Timesheets - Salaried Employees

[idustin]

Nevada

Is it beneficial to have salaried employees complete/submit time sheets? Are they actually needed? For documentation purposes do they aid in being safe than sorry?

[cbg]

It depends entirely on the company situation.

If the hours worked by any given employee are going to be used for, say, client billing purposes, they can be not just beneficial but downright necessary.

They can also be helpful in keeping track of eligibility for FMLA, vacation, 401k or other hours-based benefits.

But there's no one overall yes-or-no answer; it's all a matter of company needs.

[lhwing90]

I was hired as a salaried employee in Nevada in 2001. In 2004, I was instructed to submit timesheets, which included all hours I worked. As a salaried employee, I did not get paid for overtime (as would hourly employees), nor did I expect to. I thought salaried employees could use the overtime as "comp-time" (i.e. for doctor appointments), and I was told this too by my employer. In 2005, I was instructed to NOT show any overtime on my timesheets, no matter how many hours I worked. Now in 2006, I've been instructed to NOT work any overtime at all. My employer (also owner/president of company) said that any overtime shown on my timesheet could be "used against him/comany", but refused to go into any details. I've never heard of this before, and when working in CA before as a salaried employee, this was never an issue. Are the laws in NV different?

Also, does an employer have the right to deduct a percentage of the employees' medical/health insurance from their payroll?

[Pattymd]

Whether or not requiring exempt employees to report hours worked is up to the employer. No matter whether actual hours or just 8/hours per day are entered, as long as the exempt employee is PAID correctly (regardless of the hours worked, with limited exceptions) for the week, the reporting of such hours will not serve to invalidate the exemption.

And you do know that comp time for exempt employees is never required by law, right?

Are you asking if the employer can deduct a portion (or all) of the premiums for health insurance coverage from your net pay? Of course they can.

[4labor]

Here are the facts... Employer doing business in Virginia requires salaried, OT exempt employees to complete timesheets. Employer recently announced that employees who do not turn in timesheets by 3pm on the last day of a pay period (before work has even been completed for the period!) will not receive their pay for that period until the subsequent pay period. While VA law says employers only have to pay salaried employees once a month, it also says they "shall establish regular pay periods." Because the "regular pay period" of the employer is every other week, would the employer's withholding of wages under this policy violate the law? Any other law? Is anyone familiar with and caselaw on point? Any thoughts are appreciated.

[cbg]

It is NOT illegal for them to require exempt employees to submit timesheets. It is NOT illegal for them to announce that exempt employees who do not submit the timesheets by such and such a time will not get paid until the next pay period.

However, it IS illegal for them to actually withhold the pay.

Fine line hair splitting here - they can SAY they're going to do anything they want. You do not have a legal claim until they ACTUALLY withhold pay.

When and if your pay is withheld, file a claim for unpaid wages with the VA DOL.

And, I am compelled to point out, the exempt employees can make this whole problem go away by simply submitting their timesheets by the time they are required to do so.

[ashley0459]

Hello,
I work for a small company in southern Nevada. Just recently I was awarded a promotion and switched to salary. But I am not sure that my company is following the salary laws of Nevada. Like all salary employees, I do not receive pay for any overtime I work. My company offers ALL employees (including hourly) 2 paid sick days a year. Even tho I am on salary, if I am out of the office for more than those two days, or do not work a full 40 hour week, my pay check is docked for those hours. I personally do not feel that this is the way salary should be handled. Can you please provide me with any information regarding this matter please? Thank you!

[cbg]

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

An exempt employee can have their salary docked under the following circumstances:

1.) If it is the first or last week of employment and the employee did not work the entire week
2.) If the employee is absent for reasons attributable to FMLA
3.) If the employer offers a reasonable number of paid sick days; the employee either is not yet eligible for them or has already used them, and calls in sick again
4.) The employee takes a full day off for personal reasons
5.) The employee has been suspended for a major safety violation
6.) The employee has been suspended for violation of a written company policy that is applicable to all employees and which relates to workplace conduct (workplace violence, sexual harassment, drugs/alcohol in the workplace, etc.)

A non-exempt employee, regardless of pay method (except in the remote chance that you are being paid on the fluctuating workweek method which is quite unlikely but ArmyRet will have my head if I don't mention it ) does not have to be paid for any time you do not work.

[DHC]

I don't have a problem with turning in a timesheet and I don't even have a problem with punching in and out, which is the new rule at my company. But as a salaried employee, is it required that I punch in and out for lunch?
Thanks!

[Pattymd]

By law, no, it is not required that you punch in/out for lunch. But it is required if the company says so.

[DHC]

And if I don't go to lunch, and there's no company policy that salaried employees must take a lunch, then I shouldn't be punching in and out for a lunch period that I haven't taken...is that correct? Thanks for your help.

[cbg]

No, you shouldn't be punching in and out for a lunch you're not taking.

But, if the company wants you to take a lunch, and you don't, you can be disciplined or fired.

So if they want you to take a lunch, I'd suggest you do so.