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Overtime Rights for the Food and Beverage Industry

Understanding Your Overtime Rights in the Food and Beverage Industry

Introduction to Overtime Entitlements

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If you work in the food and beverage industry and your employer expects you to work more than forty hours in a week, you may be entitled to overtime pay. Under both Federal and New Jersey State law, if you are a non-managerial employee such as a cook, waiter, waitress, custodian, cashier, dishwasher, host, busboy, or bartender, you have the same overtime protections as workers in other industries. This means that if you have to work more than forty hours in a week, you are entitled to overtime pay (at least 1.5 times your hourly rate) for the additional hours.

Why Overtime Pay is Often Missed

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Why Workers in the Food and Beverage Industry Do Not Always Receive Overtime Pay
Unpaid overtime is common in restaurants and bars for many reasons.

• Businesses stay open longer than eight hours per day and more than five days a week.

• It’s common for rushes, parties, or weather to suddenly affect when and how often employees are required to come to work.

• The businesses themselves turn over frequently as do the workers.

• Employers often don’t know their obligations or track worker time well.

• Food and beverage industry workers often don’t know their rights or fear possible retaliation.

• Some employers simply try to evade the law.

Identifying Entitlement to Overtime Pay

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How to Know if You Deserve Overtime Pay
If you are being asked to work more than forty hours in a week, here are five common practices where you may have the right to unpaid overtime.

• Independent Contractor Misclassification
Were you asked to sign a document classifying you as an ‘independent contractor’?
According to the Department of Labor, mislabeling an employee as an ‘independent contractor’ is one of the most common techniques used to avoid paying overtime. If your boss tells you when you work, oversees the details of your daily duties, and the quality of your work, you are not an independent contractor; you are an employee with a right to overtime.

• Misleading Managerial Titles
Were you given a title as a ‘Manager’ or an ‘Executive’ with no change in pay or status?
You might be flattered by the title, but if you don’t actually manage anyone, get almost the same pay, and have no say in adjusting work routines, it is possible that your title is being used to avoid overtime and other obligations.

• Uncompensated Prep Time and Off-Clock Work
Are you asked or expected to do tasks before your official shift or to stay late off the clock?
Prep time and cleanup are still considered work time for overtime purposes.

• Time Card Adjustments
Are hours missing or being juggled in your time card?
If time you actually worked does not appear on your time card, it could be that your employer is trying to avoid leaving a record of going over forty hours for the week.

• Unauthorized Overtime Misunderstandings
You are told overtime must be authorized by a manager.
If your duties are taking longer than your official shift and your employer is aware of it, the time may count as hours worked whether or not they are formally authorized.

Legal Support for Overtime Claims

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Contact New Jersey Labor Law Attorneys
If you think you may have unpaid overtime or other possible issues with your work conditions, take action by seeking help from someone who knows the law, knows the process, and values discretion. The law firm of John J. Zidziunas & Associates has a team of New Jersey labor law attorneys available to confidentially review your case. For further information, Contact Us.

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