Hello-

New here, and found this forum on an internet search. I have an odd ball question that I could not find the answer to in searching this site.

I work for airline and myself and co-workers are paid salary wages, the issue is that we are all putting in well over 40 hour work weeks and are not being compensated for the OT. It is burning us all out, and compensation would be nice. Looking at the wage laws poster in the break room I noticed that it stated that all hours over 40 must be compensated for by at least time and a half, but some employers are exempt. I know that the airlines are under the railroad act, or something similar to that verbiage.

Is there any law that would require my company to pay out overtime for the salaried position for hours put in over 40?

Salaried is only a pay method. What matters is if you are exempt or non-exempt.

If you are non-exempt, then unless you are being paid under the fluctuating work week method, you must be paid overtime if you work over 40 hours.

However, if you are exempt, there are no circumstances whatsoever in which you are entitled to any additional compensation over and above your regular salary, even if you work 168 hours a week.

It is your job duties, which you did not provide, that determines if you are exempt or not.

I know that the airlines are under the railroad act, or something similar to that verbiage.

The following quote is from the BNA payroll library (a paid service):

Employees of air carriers covered by the Railway Labor Act are exempt from the overtime-pay requirements of the FLSA, but not from its minimum wage requirements. This exemption applies only to an airline's actual carrier activities. For example, the exemption would not be available to the subsidiary of an airline that operates a computerized reservation system. In addition, an airline's airport and flight personnel will not be exempt from overtime-pay requirements if they devote more than 20 percent of their time to activities that are not related to transportation activities. Nonexempt activities include mechanical repairs, flight instruction, and sales of planes or parts.