I am writing this under my husbands’ registration as mine didn’t go through. My name is Paula and I have worked for eight years as a bookkeeper for a small wholesale company employing 12-15 people including two owners. The company does engage in interstate commerce and meets the yearly income requirement for being under Wage and Hour guidelines.

In March 2008 the company underwent a Wage and Hour Self Audit going back two years. I was hired in 2000 on a part time flex work- week ranging from 35-40 hours per week. There have been conflicting responses from the DOL stating my classification anywhere from hourly exempt to salary exempt. I was hired in 2000 for $15.00/ hour and most recently earned as $20.45. All my forms, evaluations etc state that I am hourly.

I did the self- audit worksheet myself. The period ranged from 3/03/06 through 2/22/08.
My computations show that I should have received back pay around $4500.00. Imagine my surprise when I was presented with a check for $1184.86 less deduction of $101.88.
I refused to accept the check or sign any papers. Since then I have been subjected to continuous harassment and finally termination.

I had phoned the DOL representative twice to contact me during the actual audit regarding my classification. The owner had stated she was going to state everyone was “administrative exempt.” The DOL rep did not return my call. When the DOL rep came in to the office to interview employees, I told her I would like to discuss my classification with her. She left without talking to me.

I called the DOL agent 5/12/08 after refusing to accept the determination check to find out what this check represented. She told me that I was exempt but they decided to give me something anyway. I explained that this looked like a payment for salary non- exempt, which I was disputing. I had weeks listed on my worksheet where I worked less than forty hours AND had been paid less than forty hours. She then said that although I was hourly I was highly compensated compared to the other employees. I stated that I was the third highest employee of the company. The other two were inside sales people and with their commissions they were more highly compensated and did receive their 1 ½ overtime back pay. In fact, the sales manager had been receiving about ten hours a week in overtime benefits for the past several years.

Just today I finally reached the DOL representatives’ supervisor so I could find out exactly what they were basing this back payment on. To my surprise he called me back and said that my worksheet showed I was paid 40 hours every week, therefore I was salary. I stated to him that there were several weeks that I worked less than forty and was paid less than forty hours. On 3/24/06 I worked 36 hours and 56 minutes, paid for 37 hours, 4/21/06 worked 36 hours and 35 minutes, paid for 36 ½ hours, 7/7/06 worked 38 hours and 23 minutes and paid for 38 ½ hours…..4/26/07 worked 34 hours and 9 minutes and paid for 34 ¼ hours and 8/10/07 worked 38 hours and 23 minutes, paid for 38 ½ hours. I have worked a lot of weeks over forty hours, as it is the nature of bookkeeping. How can they claim I am salary when NOTHING shows salaried on any of my employment records? Also I was written up for the first time June 5th in 8 years because I left work at 5:35 p.m. possibly resulting in 5 minutes overtime. If I am exempt, why was I written up? I did not go into overtime as there was one more workday in the week that I had to adjust to forty hours. There was another employee that also was paid hourly and sometimes worked less than forty hours per week. I was told by the owner to pay him forty hours when he was short forty as she considered him to be salary. I understand that this scenario but how can she have it both ways. I am since been terminated less than a month after refusing to accept the Wage and Hour determination, and been turned down for unemployment benefits. I desperately need some advise.

Also, I thought if an employee was salaried they had to be paid for jury duty and give the employer the jury duty check. I had to use all vacation and sick days I had on hand and when they were exhausted I was paid less than forty hours.

In this first place "hourly exempt" is very limited, and a bookkeeper would not qualify.

However, I don't know what to tell you. The DOL has apparently made their determination. The only other recourse you might have is a civil suit. You can always contact an attorney.

Sorry for the duplicate posting.:o As I said before I am new to this website and am trying to understand how it works.

I have never been told that I was a salaried employee and have only been paid forty hours whenever I worked forty hours or more. Any work week less than forty hours I HAVE BEEN PAID LESS THAN FORTY HOURS. As I had been with this company for eight years, I have less and less weeks that are fewer than forty hours. This is a growing company. The eve of the DOL meeting the owner told me she was going to have to get her money back some way, she stopped commissions to sales personnel immediately.

05/03/00 I was hired part time to work 35-40 hours per week on a four day work week.

5/12/08 Offered and refused the back pay check, dated April 22nd, as I was hourly, a one person department, and could make no independent judgement(s).

5/19/08 I was reassigned to a new supervisor who had been with the company for about 2-3 months.

5/20/08 I was told by Supervisor that I could no longer work the four day flex schedule I had worked for eight years. I started out working less than forty hours per week. As my work load grew within the past year or so I ended up working more forty hour weeks (still had some weeks less than forty)to make sure I could complete my tasks. I could now work four or five days a week BUT only eight hours per day. I didn't want to work five days a week but could not afford an $8,507.20 pay cut. My elderly mother lives with us and requires some of my time.

05/23/08 I asked to implement the break policy discussed at the general meeting 05/08/08. Several employees complained that in our no smoke work place, another employee was allowed a morning and afternnon smoke break. Our policy stated smoke breaks only at lunch and no one else was allowed to take a scheduled break of any kind. My supervisor approved a morning and afternnon break but I had to take a half hour lunch instead of an hour.

Several minutes later my supervisor returned and "demanded" I tell her who told me about the lunch break policy. You see I was out sick 05/08/08 and this policy was not published nor disclosed to me by the management. I refused to disclose anything but referred her to the 05/08/08 general meeting called while I was out.

I did start taking my breaks and half hour lunch. Oh, by the way these are UNPAID breaks per the company management. Imagine my surprise, right after we had gone through a DOL Audit.

06/03/08 Although my supervisor had two reports, (required under Wage and Hour so she is exempt from overtime) I was the only one required to meet with her twice daily to make sure I had completed the tasks assigned. I had repeatly received pay increases from 4% to 8% over my eight years.

Offered to work Friday June 6th if needed since I had vacation time scheduled. I would gladly trade June 6th and take a day at the end of my vacation, June 16th.

06/04/08 Busy week, trying to get ready for vacation. I am not a clock watcher and oops didn't leave until 5:35 P.M.

06/05/08 In the morning meeting I was written up (first time in eight years) because I left five minutes late and would have overtime per my supervisor. This is not totally true as 06/05, today, is our final work week day and I would have taken a longer lunch period.

During the afternoon meeting my supervisor wanted to know if I had talked to vendors that afternoon as I was on the phone several times for lengthy calls. I was making vendor calls and had some long hold times trying to get through.

Again offered, to come in to work. Supervisor said no and that someone else was already scheduled for the other day off, June 16th. Before leaving for the evening I sent an I-mail stating that I would come in to complete my current assignment and clean up my office so she could find what she needed. I could use my vacation day at another time as I was not going out of town.

06/06/08 I came in to complete the unfinished task.My supervisor wanted me to stay and do a regular's days work. I stated that my uncompleted task I thought was a priority, bank reconciliaton, and I had only planned to complete it. She told me to go home.

06/16/08 I returned from vacation. I met with my supervisor that stated I left for vacation without completing my assigned tasks. I reminded her she sent me home. She said I was not completing my tasks on time. I offered today and prior to have her sit with me so she could see exactly what and how my tasks were completed. She said she didn't have time.
The afternoon meeting went pretty much the same way involving a third party observer. I met with the owner of the company. I was unhappy the way my supervisor always talked down to me. She said if I was unhappy to quit. I told her that I could not afford to quit so she said it was best to terminate me and for me to file for unemployment.

06/27/08 Went in to pick up my pay check for 06/13/08 a vacation day and
my termination day 06/16/08. Usually we also get paid for the unused but earned vacation days. My check was for one day with two weeks of employee insurance contribution deducted for the period of June 16, thru June 30th leaving me $84.84. Our insurance is to end the last day worked.

07/11/08 Received unemployment determination which I plan to appeal. Unsuitable conduct per the employer.

More to come but need help as soon as possible. I do not know whether to claim wrongful termination due to refusal of back pay. I also need to decide if I am to file with DOL regarding unpaid break time etc. I am not concerned about the break money lost but am tired of watching for eight years while this owner twists everything around. At this point she should know the DOL rules backwards and forwards but continues to disregard them.

I am not reading all that. Any opinions you would get here would be only that. To my knowledge, you have no appeal rights through the DOL itself. If you don't agree with the DOL determination, see an attorney to see if there is anything you can do civilly.