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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
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    Default Non-Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    My question involves labor and employment law for the state of: NJ

    So today the co was closed due to inclement weather (not just our dept, but the whole co). We received text msgs from 2 managers stating "we could either work from home (on co laptop) or use a vacation day"

    I've sent a msg to HR but feel this is against the law since I am "Non Exempt"

    Is this correct?

    It would be the same as if we were required to work on any other day that the co is closed such as a national holiday, would it not?

    Thank you--

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
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    Massachusetts
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    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    No, it is not even remotely against the law. Regardless of your exempt status.

    And you can be required to work on so-called national holidays as well, In fact, in your state (and in most others as well) you could be required to work 365 days a year and as long as you were paid properly, it would not violate a single law.

  3. #3
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    Jan 2015
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    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    Quote Quoting cbg
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    No, it is not even remotely against the law. Regardless of your exempt status.

    And you can be required to work on so-called national holidays as well, In fact, in your state (and in most others as well) you could be required to work 365 days a year and as long as you were paid properly, it would not violate a single law.
    So how is that possible that my pay is based on 40 hours a week and the company is closed. It is a federal (not state) law. It would be the same as requiring someone to work on Christmas, Easter etc......

    http://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime_pay.htm

    would this not apply?

  4. #4
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    Massachusetts
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    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    Overtime is due on time WORKED, not on time PAID. Time you get paid for that you do not actually WORK, such as vacation, sick or holiday pay, does not figure into overtime.

  5. #5
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    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    Quote Quoting cbg
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    Overtime is due on time WORKED, not on time PAID. Time you get paid for that you do not actually WORK, such as vacation, sick or holiday pay, does not figure into overtime.
    Unless the company generously decides to figure it into overtime. Many do for full time employees, but its not legally required of them. A snow/emergency day however is a totally different proposition even for companies that are generous about holidays. This particular company was being pretty fair about the whole thing. They gave the employees the option to work from home or take a vacation day. That was going above and beyond. That indicated that the realized the day would have an impact on their employee's pay and considered alternatives to lessen that impact. They did not have to do that.

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    I'm talking about what the law requires, not what they may do. Although I take issue with "many" employers figuring paid but unworked time into overtime - that's an expensive proposition and I don't know of many who do that regularly. I do agree, though, that far from being illegal, allowing an employee to work from home or take a vacation day is providing the employees with options they did not have to have. The employer could have said, stay home, do no work, and you won't get paid for it - you're just out of luck, and at least for the non-exempt employees that would have been perfectly legal. This way, at least the employees get paid.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
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    6

    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    Quote Quoting llworking
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    Unless the company generously decides to figure it into overtime. Many do for full time employees, but its not legally required of them. A snow/emergency day however is a totally different proposition even for companies that are generous about holidays. This particular company was being pretty fair about the whole thing. They gave the employees the option to work from home or take a vacation day. That was going above and beyond. That indicated that the realized the day would have an impact on their employee's pay and considered alternatives to lessen that impact. They did not have to do that.
    Ok, I understand the overtime....however the entire company was closed......

    This particular manager decided to go rogue and require us to use vacation or work from home.

    This may be more a violation of company policy than against the law??

  8. #8
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    Oct 2006
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    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    Quote Quoting JM18!MMRT
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    Ok, I understand the overtime....however the entire company was closed......

    This particular manager decided to go rogue and require us to use vacation or work from home.

    This may be more a violation of company policy than against the law??
    How do you know that he "decided to go rogue"? Maybe the company had no intention of paying anyone for that day, and he went to bat for his department to get them the opportunity to get paid?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
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    6

    Default Re: Non Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    Quote Quoting llworking
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    How do you know that he "decided to go rogue"? Maybe the company had no intention of paying anyone for that day, and he went to bat for his department to get them the opportunity to get paid?
    Again, this is a VERY LARGE (one of the largest) companies.....I've been here for MANY YEARS and worked for MANY other managers.

    I've never experienced this before, no one I know has ever experienced this before and we all received the email from corporate stating we were closed.

    The company "IS/DOES/WILL" pay everyone for their time....they closed due to inclement weather as well as a "declared state of emergency"

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
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    OH10
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    Default Re: Non-Exempt Employee Required to Work when Company is Closed

    If you feel your manager is in error, go over his head and risk being fired.

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