Dalton Wage Theft Lawyer

When employees go to work, employers have certain expectations of them. Employees also have expectations of their employer and being paid fairly and on time for all hours worked is one of the biggest ones. Unfortunately, this does not always happen.

When that is the case, a Dalton wage theft lawyer can help employees recoup wages held back by an employer. Speak to an experienced FLSA attorney about what your options for recovering your wages are.

Minimum Wage Requirements in Dalton

The minimum wage in Dalton is $5.15 an hour for employees. This is lower than the federally mandated minimum wage of $7.25, which can cause confusion when employees are unsure as to which minimum wage they should be receiving.

To answer the question, employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) should receive the federal minimum wage. But the question of who is covered is also ambiguous. This is because the formal definition of who should be covered under the FLSA is any employer whose annual sales total $500,000 in interstate commerce.

This leads many employees to believe that only employees of very large corporations are covered by the FLSA. But that is not always the case. And it is the term interstate commerce that causes the confusion.

Many courts found that companies who interact with any other state in any way, even just sending or receiving mail from them, take part in interstate commerce. Because of this, most employees in Dalton are covered under the FLSA and are entitled to the federal minimum wage.

Types of Wage Theft

Many people think that the only type of wage theft is when an employer refuses to pay an employee for time worked. But there are many other types of wage theft as well.

One type of wage theft is when an employer does not pay the correct minimum wage. This is often an issue in Dalton because of the differences between the state and federal minimum wage requirements.

Overtime rates are also higher than minimum wage. For someone receiving the federal minimum wage in Dalton, the overtime rate would be $10.88, one and a half times the regular minimum wage. When an employer does not pay this higher rate for overtime worked, that is another form of wage theft.

An employer may also make illegal deductions from an employee’s paycheck, which is another form of wage theft. For example, if an employee deducted money from a waitress’ paycheck because they broke some dishes, this is an illegal deduction.

Compensation for Wage Theft

When an employer committed wage theft against an employee, a Dalton wage theft lawyer could help an employee sue them to recoup wages the wages they were entitled to. When an employer is guilty of wage theft, they may be required to pay the employee all back wages as well as liquidated wages.

Liquidated wages are also sometimes called double pay and require the employer to pay twice the amount. This is to serve as punishment towards the employer for violating Dalton’s employment laws. When the employer did not intentionally commit wage theft, the court may waive liquidated wages.

How a Dalton Wage Theft Attorney Can Help

Everyone deserves fair treatment in the workplace and to receive the full income they earned. When this does not happen, the employee may be struggling to cope without the missing wages and their employer may be guilty of wage theft.

If you believe you were a victim of wage theft at your place of employment, speak to a Dalton wage theft lawyer who can help you with your case. They may be able to help you receive the full wages you are entitled to.