The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets mandatory minimum wage rates as well as requires most employees to pay overtime wages for each hour worked over 40 in a single workweek. 

An overtime pay lawsuit lawyer holds employers responsible for not paying overtime wages as they are in violation of federal law. These cases seek compensation for unpaid overtime hour wages and are thus called “Wage & Hour Lawsuits.” 

Employers are required to pay one and a half times the regular hourly wage or similarly calculated salary when an employee passes 40 hours in a single week. 

Often claims for unpaid wages can take two years before the filing of the lawsuit and the resolution. Certain laws in some states permit claims to seek unpaid wages for two years or more in the past.

Under federal law, compensation to an employee includes the difference between the amount they were paid and should have received. They can also receive additional compensation for liquidated damages or interest and for attorneys’ fees. 

If you file a Wage & Hour Lawsuit for unpaid overtime wages, employers may not demote, reduce employee hours, assigning undesirable shifts, reduce job duties, or give intentionally false poor performance reviews as a way of retaliating. If an employer does retaliate, additional compensation can be awarded to the employee.

Many states have their own separate and distinct overtime and minimum wage laws. In situations when both the FLSA and state law apply, the law setting the higher standards must be observed. This means that the employer is bound by the stricter of the two sets of laws when determining the overtime pays laws and minimum wage laws. 

Employers who violate these laws are subject to a lawsuit seeking the proper payment of overtime and wages.

Wage and Hour lawsuits can be filed individually but are also often filed collectively in a class-action lawsuit. The FLSA provides employees the right to file private action against employers for unpaid minimum wages and overtime pay. These lawsuits are from one employee against the employer unless filed collectively. 

A collective lawsuit is filed when multiple employees at the same business have unpaid overtime claims. These lawsuits are filed as a group and provide strength numbers to fight against a large business and its highly paid legal team. 

Even if a class-action lawsuit has already been filed, an employee is still able to join at a later point.

If your employer failed to pay you the required overtime pay or minimum wage that is required in your state, you should contact an experienced overtime pay lawyers to discuss your legal rights.

You may be able to pursue an unpaid overtime lawsuit to recover the wages owed to you by your employer. 

In many states, you can seek payment of back overtime pay for up to three years in the past and then continue to receive your proper wages in the future. Many courts will award you the attorney’s fees and costs as part of your lawsuit settlement.