a bit complicated overtime vacation problem

[PinkPanther]

This is a bit complicated, but I will try to explain it the best I can.
This is about my husbands 14 day pay-period as a police officer in Texas from Monday the 29th of Nov to Sunday the 12th of Dec.

My husband works 12 hour shifts: 36 hours one week (three days via 12 hours) and a 44 hour week (three days via 12 hours + one short day of 8 hours). Altogether 80 hours for two weeks.

On the 44 hours week (29th Nov to 5th of Dec.) he took vacation and on the paycheck, he received today, the 44 hours of vacation were correctly listed.
Now it gets complicated: He worked the full 36 hour second week + worked 8 overtime hours on one of his regular off days for mandatory training.

On his paycheck these 8 hours are not listed as overtime, but as regular time, meaning they added the 8 hours to the 36 hours = 44 hours and paid him regular pay for it.
His paycheck stats:
Regular $17.97 44 hours
Vacation $17.97 44 hours

When he asked of why this is, he was told, this is because he took vacation the week before and so the 8 hours cancel each other out somehow with one of his vacation days. How this exactly works couldn't be explained...

As I mentioned before they deducted the full 44 hours of vacation from his vacation time, so no substitute was made + we would prefer the money over the time anyway, and if we can't get the money, don't they have to give him for the 8 hours of overtime actually 12 hours of vacation (x 1.5) ?

What are our options?

Thank you for your time.

[LConnell]

Under Section 207(k) of the FLSA, employees working for public agencies of less than 5 employees and who are engaged in law enforcement or fire protection are exempted from the FLSA. Public police or fire agencies with more than 5 employees are eligible for a partial ememption. This partial exemption permits the work period to be calculated in periods of up to 28 consecutive days. If a law enforcement person works over 171 hours in the 28 hour period, they will begin receiving overtime. Fire protection employees must work beyond 212 hours in order to receive overtime. Even when they get overtime, it may be compensated at half-time, rather than time and a half.

Does that answer your questions?

[PinkPanther]

Hello,
first of all, thank you for your reply, it however doesn't answer my question.
My husband (and others), have always been paid overtime when it was over 80 hours in one pay period and now all of the sudden he doesn't because he was on vacation? They just paid him the regular pay for the 8 overtime hours ($17.97) and not the x1.5 amount ($27.09). The other officers who attended that training got the $27.09 and my husband did not.
PS: The Police Dep. has more than 5 Employees.

Thank you for your time )

[LConnell]

The issue may be that overtime is calculated based on hours worked, as opposed to hours paid. So, in essence, the vacation day prevented his earning ov overtime. Let me know if that addresses your question.

[AndrewAK]

There is a possibility that your husband's employer has a special situation in effect that requires him to work more than the standard 40 hr work week. The DOL Fair Pay website indicates 7(k) exemption as a way that this can effect employees.

RE: your husband's vacation and training.

Training and vacation time may be paid on a strate time rate. He should check his current contract. Your State may have Overtime rules that allow employees to recieve ovetime pay for time worked beyond 8 hours in a day, and 40 hours in a week. The FLSA only states that overtime pay is due to employees after work beyond 40 hours per week. State rule trumps the FLSA rule in this case.

The following is taken directly from the Fair Pay website:

Police Officers, Fire Fighters and Other First Responders

Police officers, detectives, deputy sheriffs, state troopers, highway patrol officers, investigators, inspectors, correctional officers, parole or probation officers, park rangers, fire fighters, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, ambulance personnel, rescue workers, hazardous materials workers and similar employees (“first responders”) who perform work such as preventing, controlling or extinguishing fires of any type; rescuing fire, crime or accident victims; preventing or detecting crimes; conducting investigations or inspections for violations of law; performing surveillance; pursuing, restraining and apprehending suspects; detaining or supervising suspected and convicted criminals, including those on probation or parole; interviewing witnesses; interrogating and fingerprinting suspects; preparing investigative reports; and other similar work are not exempt under Section 13(a)(1) or the regulations and thus are protected by the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the FLSA.

First responders generally do not qualify as exempt executives because their primary duty is not management. They are not exempt administrative employees because their primary duty is not the performance of office or non-manual work directly related to the management or general business operations of the employer or the employer’s customers. Similarly, they are not exempt learned professionals because their primary duty is not the performance of work requiring knowledge of an advanced type in a field of learning customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction. Although some first responders have college degrees, a specialized academic degree is not a standard prerequisite for employment.

[yfranklin]

At my job ,working our 7th day use to mean double time,now they changed
it to 1.6 times. All overtime is now 1.6 times so now I only work 5 days and over a little each day,and take my days off.

[Pattymd]

And, vfranklin, what is your point, considering this post has been dormat for a year-and-a-half?

[cbg]

Please do not respond to inactive posts.