My understanding is that I'm elgible for overtime being a programmer in California where my job required me to write code more than 50% of the time.

It's only about 20 hours over a two year period 2006-2008 and it's not worth it to hire a lawyer. Who would I contact to file a claim, the labor board of California? Is anyone familiar with the process and what to expect?

I am salaried, or exempt status.

Thanks

If you are eligible for overtime, you are not exempt.

If you are exempt, you are not eligible for overtime.

The two are mutually exclusive. Which is it? Are you exempt, or are you eligible for overtime?

http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/HowToFileWageClaim.htm

Agreed, though. Most computer programmers who primarily just write code are nonexempt. "Salaried" is merely a pay method.

http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/HowToFileWageClaim.htm

Agreed, though. Most computer programmers who primarily just write code are nonexempt. "Salaried" is merely a pay method.

Thanks for the link Patty. California is different in that you can be considered exempt and still get overtime under specific circumstances if you are a computer programmer who writes code more than 50% of the time.

If you are eligible for overtime, you are not exempt.

If you are exempt, you are not eligible for overtime.

The two are mutually exclusive. Which is it? Are you exempt, or are you eligible for overtime?

The company considers me exempt but in reality I'm eligible for overtime.

For work after 2006, the employee can be paid a salary, but the exemption will be removed if the employee's wage ever drops below the minimum threshold wage. For 2006, that minimum threshold wage is $47.81 per hour. The important thing to note is that if you work more hours, your pay must remain above that threshold. As a result, the only flat salary that guarantees that you will meet this exemption's salary requirement is $417,689 per year.

To see how this works, consider the following examples: A salary of $99,445 will give you an hourly rate of $47.81, but only if you work 40 hours or less. As soon as you work 41 hours in a week, the exemption would fail. It also appears from the text of the law that it would fail for all the time you worked in that position, not just the one week that you happen to fall below. Thus, if your employer just wants to pay you a flat salary and you occasionally work some 50 hour weeks, the employer would have to pay you $124,306 per year to be safe. Even then, if you work 51 hours in one week, the exemption would fail.

The is applies to 2006 and 2007 as the law was changed for 2008.

What the company considers you, and what you are, are not necessarily the same thing.

Even in California, there is no such thing as an exempt employee who is eligible for overtime. I agree that it is possible in some circumstances for an exempt employee to be paid on an hourly basis, but overtime is what you are exempt FROM. If you are eligible for overtime, you CANNOT be exempt.

What the company considers you, and what you are, are not necessarily the same thing.

Even in California, there is no such thing as an exempt employee who is eligible for overtime. I agree that it is possible in some circumstances for an exempt employee to be paid on an hourly basis, but overtime is what you are exempt FROM. If you are eligible for overtime, you CANNOT be exempt.

So if I'm able to collect overtime wages, what you are saying is the company improperly classified me as 'exempt' where under the law I'm considerd 'non-exempt'.

I think what everyone is saying is:
- The state of CA is the final word on who is Exempt and who is not. The state of CA does not care about the opinion of anyone but their own on your classification.
- You can file a wage claim that you were incorrectly classified and are due unpaid overtime. This claim will either succeed or not.
- I can say that if you are spending 50%+ of your time writing code, then I like your side of the case better then your employers. But the state does not care what I like.
- If you are supervising 2 or more full time employees, then your situation gets a lot more complicated. The employer will argue that you fall under the Executive exception, not the IT exception. This would not make you certainly Exempt, but it would basically invalidate all the discussion thus far.

So if I'm able to collect overtime wages, what you are saying is the company improperly classified me as 'exempt' where under the law I'm considerd 'non-exempt'.

Yes, I would accept that. If you are legally entitled to overtime (and I do not know if you are or not) then you are not exempt, no matter what the company says you are. There are no circumstances whatsoever in any state, including California, where an employee who is correctly classified as exempt is entitled by law to overtime regardless of how they are paid.

I've just signed a waiver (severance agreement) that I agree to give up my rights to claim anymore wages from my employer.

If I file an overtime claim with the state now, will the state side with the employer that I've given up my rights to claim overtime wages or will they enforce the overtime law and make the employer pay?

We have no way of knowing that.