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I am employed in a $60B+ a year plus multinational organization. I work in the department where overtime and working weekends are more often and often required. I am a w2 employee. Please let me know if there is something I can say or submit in paper to scare them a little bit so that they got off my case. Can they just fire me for refusing to work long hrs/weekends ? if so would I be eligible for ss benefits ? also, I heard the following story : the guy, W2, was forced to do overtime all the time. At some point of time after months of such a work..on the way home he ran into a tree, injuring himself. Then he filed a lawsuit against his employer and manager. Not sure how it finished …but is there some hope ? thanks for your feedback ?
If you are exempt, the expectation is you work what is needed, non exempt overtime should be minimal, but you are compensated additional money for working overtime.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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In my area, yes, they can fire me for not working required overtime. No, there is no limit to the amount my employer can demand from me. Yes, they can fire me for not working the OT and, in fact, there have been some people who were fired because they refused to work the required OT. I do get overtime pay.
However, I have to WORK 40 hours in order to get OT. So, for example, my employer wants people to work th 4th of July (company holiday). The workers will get straight time pay for that and not OT because this week, we will not have actually worked 40 hours.
Did you know that overtime would be a regular thing when you were hired? I ask because my husband works in the oilfield, in a hiring position, and overtime is VERY common (like - 70 hour work weeks) in that field. Some people are attracted to that because they WANT the overtime. Others want a job and seem to ignore the very clearly stated issue of required overtime when they are being hired, and then they get balky, call in sick a lot, etc when the reality of that overtime hits them.
Regardless, you now know that overtime is required and that you don't like it. My advice would be to find another job with hours you prefer. It's not the company's fault that you don't like the overtime - like I said, many workers WANT overtime. You shouldn't penalize the company or try to stick it to them just because you don't want to work the required hours. You're being fairly compensated for your work over 40 hours a week.
If you are exempt, the expectation is you work what is needed, non exempt overtime should be minimal, but you are compensated additional money for working overtime.
Did you know that overtime would be a regular thing when you were hired? I ask because my husband works in the oilfield, in a hiring position, and overtime is VERY common (like - 70 hour work weeks) in that field. Some people are attracted to that because they WANT the overtime. Others want a job and seem to ignore the very clearly stated issue of required overtime when they are being hired, and then they get balky, call in sick a lot, etc when the reality of that overtime hits them.
Regardless, you now know that overtime is required and that you don't like it. My advice would be to find another job with hours you prefer. It's not the company's fault that you don't like the overtime - like I said, many workers WANT overtime. You shouldn't penalize the company or try to stick it to them just because you don't want to work the required hours. You're being fairly compensated for your work over 40 hours a week.
what are you talking about ? I am not getting paid overtime ...so why would I be fairly compensated. if somebody is paid OT ...yes ..they do want the overtime ...
That's the curse of being exempt. It sounds like your employer is abusing your exempt status, but there's not much you can do about it. As mentioned, unfortunately your best option is probably to look for a different job.
if somebody is paid OT ...yes ..they do want the overtime ...
Not all and still only up to a practical limit.
Most people *value* their early mornings and evenings and weekends and sleep hours.
Seasonally or episodically every job will have times when it's "all hands on deck for the duration".
But the other 40 weeks a year aren't like that. Really.
NOTE: I'm not a lawyer, so make of this what you will.
You aren't exempt just because your employer says you are and pays you a salary. There are rules about it. If you don't fit the criteria listed below, you may want to consider finding a lawyer. Obviously, there are big risks in going that route, but people have won cases that way. If there are large numbers of people in the same situation at your firm, you'll find a great many eager lawyers.
You may consider it to be more trouble that it is worth even if you don't actually meet the criteria for being exempt, but I thought I'd mention it because your story doesn't sound like the sort of relationship with management that I'm used to hearing from people who are in exempt positions.
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