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Overtime Vs. Comp Time May 5, 2016
Connie Wallace, CPA Florence City Schools (256) 768‐3036
[email protected]
School Systems Minimum Wage Policies • Most school systems have the same basic policy for minimum wage and overtime. • We all try and adhere to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) which states that the Board will pay required minimum hourly wages and overtime to all employees who are not exempt employees under FLSA. • In most school systems the regular work week begins on Sunday and ends on Saturday night. • All employees who work over forty (40) hours in a work week have to be paid overtime.
School Policies (continued) • All employees should accurately report time (this is why it is so important to have some type of time clock or computerized method of keeping up with employee time). • Non‐exempt employees are not authorized to work more than forty (40) hours in a work week without specific directive or authorization by the Superintendent, the employee’s supervisor, or the school principal.
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History – Minimum Wage Rate • The first minimum wage was set in 1938 at a rate of $.25 an hour • It increased in 1963 to $1.25 • It increased in 1974 to $2.00 • It Increased in 1990 to $3.80 • It increased in 2007 to $5.85 • And increased in 2009 and remains at $7.25 • There is ongoing discussion in Congress to increase the rate again…..
Fair Labor Standards Act: OVERTIME The federal overtime provisions are contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Unless exempt, employees covered by the Act must receive: • Overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek at a rate not less than time and one‐half their regular rates of pay • There is no limit in the Act on the number of hours employees aged 16 and older may work in any workweek. • The Act does not require overtime pay for work on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, or regular days of rest, unless overtime is worked on such days.
FLSA Overtime(Continued) • The Act applies on a workweek basis. An employee's workweek is a fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours — seven consecutive 24‐hour periods. It need not coincide with the calendar week, but may begin on any day and at any hour of the day. • Different workweeks may be established for different employees or groups of employees. • Averaging of hours over two or more weeks is not permitted. • Normally, overtime pay earned in a particular workweek must be paid on the regular pay day for the pay period in which the wages were earned.
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Compensatory Time for Overtime The compensatory policy in most School Board’s is as follows: • An agreement must be in place between the employee and the Board • Any overtime may be paid in the form of compensatory time • Compensatory time is still paid at the rate, times one and a half, just like overtime • Most systems limit an employee to no more than one hundred twenty hours (120) of compensatory time • The Board reserves the right to require an employee to use compensatory time
Categories of employees who generally earn overtime:
• Custodians • Maintenance workers • Any employee group who are schedule for a forty (40) hour week
Compensatory Time for time worked over an employees regularly schedule hours – less than 40 Categories of individuals who earn this type compensatory time • Child Nutrition Workers • Instructional Aides • Clerical Staff • Secretaries • Other support staff who work less than a forty (40) hour work week
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Procedures for calculating comp time: • Start with the time worked for the employees for a work week • If the employee was paid as a 37.5 hour employee and the employee worked 39 hours, they have earned 1.5 hours of comp time for the work week • In Florence, we have built in data and professional development days and if a support worker has comp time, they are required to take it on these days since we do not have students in the schools on these days If a 40 hour employee works 41 hours, then they have 1.5 hours of comp time and they are asked to take it as soon as possible We ask that all of our employees take the compensatory time ASAP but no later than the next scheduled data/PD day
Retirement System – Overtime Pay Limit
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Hopefully this presentation has answered some of your questions or it may have raised more questions. Feel free to contact me at (256) 768‐3036 or
[email protected] if I can ever be of any assistance to you. Connie Wallace
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