Ok, i work (for seven and a half years) at a very well known studio in Los Angeles CA. Some of us are salary my self included. we do not get paid if we miss a day and do not use a earned vacation day or sick day. we are asked to work on a regular basis to work for free on the weekend. We get paid holiday days. I am an artist (sculptor/ painter). Some of the guys who work for us are regular which means they get the ot. We are asked sometimes to work on sunday and take off a different day. i have worked a schedule like this Mon 8 am-5 pm, Tues 8 am-7pm, Wens 8 am-8 pm, Thurs 8 am-11pm Fri -off and only got paid for 32 hours regular time. we are only paid for 8 hours a day or as the studio call it 1 unit=1 day:confused: thanks for any light to help with such a dark topic

You most likely fall under the Creative Professional exemption which, as long as your weekly salary meets the criteria (now $640 per week; $600 before 1/1/08), means that you are not legally entitled to overtime pay. See here under Section 1, Professional Exemption:
http://www.dir.ca.gov/IWC/IWCArticle12.pdf

bummer. well, i think that will help me make a decision. fight or flight.
thanks for the fast reply.

I read your post a little more carefully after you responded, and I did want to check one thing. You talk about being paid for "32 hours". Are you, in fact, paid on an hourly basis? Or do you get a fixed salary of the same amount every week?

I am salary with a fixed pay unless I'm off then i am docked.

Okay, let's explore this "docking" a bit more. Does the employer have a PTO, or separate vacation and sick pay policies? How many days per year? Is your actual PAY docked, or just your time off bank?

yes, 5 vacation days slowly earned throughout the year. 1 personal day. 4 sick days. if i dont work i dont get paid. if i work in excess i only get paid for 8. thanks!

OK, here's the story.

Let's say you've used up all your vacation and your personal day. Then, if you are off for personal reasons for a full day, your salary CAN be docked for that day. What happens if you take just a partial day off, for example, 4 hours and you don't have any vacation or personal time left; is your pay docked then?

However, with only 4 sick days, it's unlikely that the federal DOL would consider that a "bona fide" sick plan (although it's not quantified in the law, it is generally considered to be at least 5 days to qualify). Therefore, if you are docked pay due to illness or injury, that would be a violation of FLSA "salary basis" regulations and would, if not corrected, invalidate your exempt status.

http://www.dol.gov/dol/allcfr/ESA/Title_29/Part_541/29CFR541.602.htm
http://www.dol.gov/dol/allcfr/ESA/Title_29/Part_541/29CFR541.603.htm

However, with only 4 sick days, it's unlikely that the federal DOL would consider that a "bona fide" sick plan (although it's not quantified in the law, it is generally considered to be at least 5 days to qualify). Therefore, if you are docked pay due to illness or injury, that would be a violation of FLSA "salary basis" regulations and would, if not corrected, invalidate your exempt status.


http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/opinion/FLSA/2005/2005_01_07_7_FLSA_PaidTimeOff.pdf