Help Wanted: Hours rules for workers who show up
Absent a work agreement, employers can determine how many hours retail staff work. But if a worker reports for work and then gets sent home, they must be paid for four hours of work at a minimum. Credit: Bloomberg News
Unfortunately, they didn't call until she had already left for work. Since she gets a ride to work, she had to telephone someone to pick her up shortly after she was dropped off. She also worked five hours without a paid, 15-minute break. When she got another retail job, her co-workers told her that her previous employer had acted illegally. They explained that if you're scheduled to work, it's illegal to send you home unless you voluntarily choose to clock out, and that you can't work a shift of fewer than four hours.
She was also told that after four hours you are entitled to a 10-minute break. She has recently started yet another job and they treat her like the first, problematic retailer. She would like to know if she can count on working at least 15 to 20 hours a week and what breaks she can expect. -- Facts, Please
As for breaks, state law says that employees must work more than six hours a day to be eligible for a meal break of at least one-half hour. No other breaks are mandated. But employers can always give employees more than the law requires.
The bottom line is this: Employers can set the terms for the benefits they offer, absent a union or employment contract that says otherwise. So your employer can legally take from your vacation days to ensure that you get paid for the Christmas closing.
Here's another perspective that might make you feel better: If you are an hourly employee, the company doesn't have to pay you when you don't work, for whatever reason. So taking from your vacation days ensures that you get paid for the unworked holiday.
Even if you and your co-workers are exempt employees, which include managers and workers whose jobs require a four-year degree, your employer could legally deduct that day from your vacation reserve. But the company couldn't legally dock your pay when the business closes if you are willing and able to work.
For more on state regulations regarding paid-time off, go to http://bit.ly/11CMa9u
For more on the state's four-hour minimum rule for employees who show up for work, go to http://bit.ly/192UZyp
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