Deductions for exempt employee

[furmom29]

My employer pays two ways, exempt (full-time) and hourly (part-time). When I started 9 months ago I was told I would receive 10 days comp time after 6 months. I am paid 2 wks behind on the 15th & last day of the month. Employees sign in & out daily, plus we keep a log of work completed. I have been told by co-workers that at the end of the year these time & log sheets are reviewed and hours missed from work are deducted from any comp time that we have coming. If we have no comp time, it is deducted from our paycheck(s). My first 6 months will include holidays being deducted as well.
As a salaried employee is my employer allowed to "total" my time lost & deduct or can they only deduct if I lost full days. Example, if I left 2 hours early to go to the dentist & then I took the next day off, can they deduct 10 hours or just 8? My understanding is that as an exempt employee they cannot deduct for partial days but only full days, is that correct?

[Pattymd]

Assuming you are exempt, your salary can only be docked under limited circumstances, and this is not one of them. It is legal, however, to offset your "comp time" with missed hours, because comp time for exempt employees is not ever required by law; it's a gift. See here:
http://www.dol.gov/dol/allcfr/ESA/Ti...CFR541.118.htm

[furmom29]

Thank you for your reply. So, can I be deducted for partial days or just full days? Can they "total" my hours and then deduct?
I have never been a salaried employee (exempt) and was under the impression that if you were salaried you were in a "management" position, I am not. My title is "coordinator" for rental properties. I have no authority to hire or fire or make management decisions. I am not required to work over-time. Can my boss give me "exempt" status because she doesn't want to pay overtime?

[Pattymd]

You don't necessarily have to manage other employees. There are four different classifications under which job duties can qualify an employee for exempt status. I would look specifically at the Administrative exemption here.
http://www.dol.gov/esa/regs/complian...a_overview.htm

It is a violation of the FLSA to pay you as an exempt employee if the job duties don't qualify you as such. Just being paid a "salary" does not automatically mean you are exempt. Nonexempt employees can be paid on "salary", but they are still legally entitled to overtime.

And now that you've clarified the comp time thing, it is based on a daily review. However, your comp balance CAN be docked; but if you're out of comp time, you still must be paid the full day, with one exception and that's if the partial-day absence is occasioned by intermittent FMLA leave.

To be honest, it sounds like this employer doesn't know what "salary basis" means when it comes to exempt employees. And maybe not even what job duties constitute a classification of "exempt".

After you read the link above, and apply it to your job duties, if you have more questions, please feel free to post back. BTW, unless you are a physician, lawyer, or teacher (or similar), if you aren't paid a guaranteed salary of at least $455/week, you can't be exempt no matter what your job duties are. Is your salary at least that much?

[furmom29]

My job duties do not fit the "administrative exemption". I was hired based on $10.00/hr. I receive the same amount every pay period whether or not I work a full 40 hrs/wk. Some pay periods are 10 days, some are 11 or 12. At the beginning of the year our lost time from the previous year is figured and then deducted from comp time or deducted from my paycheck/s if I have no comp time left.
Can my employer pay salary two weeks behind? Example: I receive a check on 1-15 for pay period of 12-16 thru 12-31. On 1-31 my check is for 1-1 thru 1-15.

[Pattymd]

The law states that you must be paid no later than 13 days following the end of the pay period if you are paid semi-monthly. I am assuming that is calendar days, but you can contact the Illinois Dept. of Labor to confirm that.

Also, if you feel you do not qualify as an exempt employee then, unless you work for a government or certain types of government entities, you CANNOT be given comp time in lieu of overtime. This is the main issue I would focus on at this point. Again, contact the state DOL to get a claim started.