Can my employer force me from hourly to salary?
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Can my employer force me from hourly to salary?
I currently work in an hourly position and I have a tremendous workload. I feel as if I am considerably underpaid, intentionally not given the same amount of authority, or appropriate and undervalued in my
position in comparison to other males that have done this exact kind position in the past. I am asked to do
the job, but specifically regarded as some form of administrative assistant instead of in a managerial capacity. I feel as though this may fall into a California Equal Pay violation. My manager is saying that I am getting a pay raise soon. However, I think it’s a small raise and it is in a way to force me to a salary vs hourly so that I am not paid for the overtime I work due to the workload I have. On another note, the workload I have is quite tremendous in comparison to the workload of the men who performed prior to me because I have many more administrative tasks than they did when they did this job due to the fact that they were back up managers used just in case they were needed. So they like to pile tons of paperwork and extra tasks on me since I don’t have this just in case additional job title, then say I’m not as valuable, therefore they use this as the bonafide
reason why Im worth less in terms of the pay scale. So I guess I have two questions, can they force me from hourly to salary, and does this sound like a California Equal Pay Act violation?
Asked on September 3, 2019 under Employment Labor Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 4 years ago | Contributor
1) An employer has 100% discretion (subject to not discriminating; see below) over how employees are paid (e.g. hourly vs. salary) and how much they are paid, and can change how the employee is paid and the amount they are paid at will. So they can make you salaried, even if that results in an effective pay cut for you.
2) Your question implies, but does not state outright, that you are female. If you are female and male employees were paid more the same work, or paid the same for doing much less work, you may have a discrimination claim and should contact the state's equal/civil rights agency or the federal EEOC.
However, if you are male, too, then other men may be treated/paid/etc. better than you without any legal violation.
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