Not receiving overtime? How to find a qualified lawyer to help receive it?

Even with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) rules and regulations, many employers find a way to violate law and legal rights of their workers. Many times employers refuse or avoid paying fair wages to employees for the extra hours and work.

Usually, employers refuse to pay overtime to salaried employees or for off the clock work. Sometimes, they do not pay fair amount of payment for the extra hours or hire workers on those positions and claim that they are exempt from FLSA law. These are just a few of the strategies companies use to cheat workers out of their payments.

Workers, who are not receiving proper wages for their overtime, must get help from an experienced overtime lawyer. But how can you find a qualified overtime lawyer to help receive your unpaid wages? Following are the aspects that can help you to select an attorney suitable for your case –

Results, results, results – Although past results don’t guarantee future successes, a good indicator of the future is the past. Look to see if the attorney understands your facts and better yet, has litigated a case like yours in the past and what was the result. There’s no guarantee of success, but if an attorney dedicates and focuses a portion of the practice to helping employees with wage theft issues, and has a track record of winning, that should speak miles.

From AVVO or Martindale Hubbell – You can also search for an attorney on these two websites. These websites usually contain the list of certified lawyers, and show attorneys with rankings. On AVVO look for lawyers that have feedback from peers and clients. On Martindale Hubbell look for attorneys that have received an AV+ rating, which is the highest rating. You can select an experienced and certified attorney from this list. If you’re considering between a couple lawyers, check out both sites to see what people had to say about them.

Use Google and official websites – You can use search engines like Google to find details of attorneys, who can help you to get your unpaid overtime. Go to the advocates’ websites for more information on their qualifications, membership, experience, and their practice areas. It will help you to select the best possible option to get fair settlements from your employer.

Big Companies may have to Pay Big Buck for Unpaid Overtime to their Staff

Not paying overtime to employees is a clear violation of the law and the rights of employees. Every employer must follow all the labor and wages related rules by the US Department of Labor, as well as all applicable State and Local laws as well. All these rules usually fall under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and are interpreted through the Courts and by regulation through the CFR.

It is a common thought among people that big companies pay well to their employees and follow all the rules of labor law. However, there are a lot of lawsuits for unpaid payments against big corporates as well, which tell a different story. One of the reasons is that the FLSA only goes back three years at best, so if an employer can violate the law for 20 years and only pay for three, no matter how you slice it, the employer wins.

There are times when big companies had to pay unpaid overtime to their employees after legal intervention initiated by an unpaid overtime attorney.

In 2014, professional social-networking company LinkedIn Corp. paid almost $6 Million in unpaid overtime wages to 359 current and former workers. The company allegedly failed to measure the right working hours of these workers in a workweek. In three states of United States; California, Michigan, and New York, McDonald’s employees filed for their unpaid wages for their extra hours.

In Phoenix, the popular restaurant chain Uncle Bear’s Grill & Bar was ordered to pay $115,000 to 54 staff members for the extra worked hours. Uncle Bear’s allegedly failed to keep track of the hours worked for cooks. An employer has the obligation to keep track of the hours worked and failure to do so is a violation.

In 2013, a Subway franchisee that owns several stores in the southeast Michigan was ordered to pay about $52,000 in back wages and damages.

The Professional Baseball team, the San Francisco Giants was forced to pay $545,000 to its employees. 74 staff members received this payment for back payments and damages. Some industries believe it is a privilege to work for them and thus don’t pay their workers at all! Sometimes this occurs like cheerleading in sports, or stripping at a club.

A company that owns 55 Dunkin’ Donuts franchise also paid $197,787 in back wages as unpaid overtime to 64 workers.

A worker who is owed wages may be entitled to double damages plus attorney fees and the costs of the litigation. Many overtime lawyers take the case on a contingency basis and are only paid if they win the suit.