Tracy Colman  |  July 12, 2022

Category: Labor & Employment

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Lawsuits may be filed when it can be shown that an assistant manager not exempt should have been paid overtime.When hiring a new employee, a boss must determine whether the hire will be classified as “exempt” or “nonexempt employee.” This is an important distinction since this distinction will determine whether or not the employee will be eligible to receive overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours a week. The distinction is important not only for the employee, but for the business. If an employee is wrongfully categorized, the business could be in violation of the law, and could open themselves up to future lawsuits.

When is an Employee Exempt from Overtime Protections?

Most of the litigation brought against employers by their employees has to do with the payment of overtime. When an employer fails to pay owed overtime to a worker was eligible to receive it, that employee may be able to take legal action against the company.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires that the majority of employees be paid the federal minimum wage for all hours logged, as well as overtime pay at time and a half for those hours that extend beyond 40 in a given workweek.

Two factors go into determining whether an employee is eligible for overtime pay or whether they are exempt from receiving it: salary level and duties performed.

According to the federal government’s standards, employees who make less than $685 per week or $35,568 per year qualify for overtime pay. However, there are some cases in which people who fall below this income level might not qualify for overtime. The law leaves room for “white-collar exemptions.” This means that workers who perform certain executive, administrative, or professional functions in their role are not legally entitled to overtime pay.

Does an Assistant Manager Meet the Executive Exemption?

While the “white-collar exemption” is a fairly clear one, the exemption may be convoluted when it comes to classifying assistant managers as exempt or non-exempt. While they do have certain leadership duties, assistant managers often perform many of the same tasks as employees in non-managerial roles.

In order to be exempt from this federal requirement, the employee must have a primary duty of managing the enterprise or managing a recognized department or subdivision of the enterprise, and that same employee has to direct at least two other full-time employees. Finally, to meet the terms of the executive exemption, the employee must have the authority to fire or hire other workers.

When Does Management Blur the Line with Exemptions?

Assistant managers often play multiple roles within an organization. Management can include training, interviewing, and selecting employees. Once an employee is brought on, an assistant manager might also adjust the hours of work or rates of pay, maintain sales records, direct the work of employees on a regular basis, determine the types of materials used to complete the job, plan and control the budget, and discipline employees.

While an employer may be under the impression that an assistant manager is not entitled to overtime, a close examination of an assistant manager’s daily tasks may reveal that they are better classified as non-exempt and entitled to overtime.

What if the Assistant Manager Performs Both Kinds of Tasks?

The gray area occurs when an assistant manager of an operation performs tasks that fall under the umbrella of both exempt and nonexempt. According to the Society for Human Resource Management, the key consideration in this kind of circumstance has to do with the primary duty of the manager. This has been interpreted as the set of tasks that dominate the majority of the employee’s work time. This could show that an assistant manager is not exempt.

Does Title Really Matter When It Comes to Determining Exempt Status?

According to Namely.com, the interpretation of the duties test that is part of the FLSA is “nuanced” and an “art form” in and of itself. However, interpretation of job title has nothing to do with the interpretation of duties. In some cases, employers may intentionally try to find a loophole in the law. Some employers may intentionally give an employee a misleading or inflated title to avoid having to pay overtime wages. As noted in the Namely article, “job titles have no bearing on whether an employee is exempt from overtime.”

For this reason, when looking at whether to identify a role as exempt or non-exempt, employees are assumed to be non-exempt unless their salary is above the legal level for overtime pay. Then, a second test involving whether the person has supervisory responsibility over one to two other full-time employees should be employed.

Part of this test is answering the question: Does this person have the authority to hire, fire, or promote the individuals for whom they provide supervision? If they cannot actually hire or fire, does their opinion carry authority with those that do perform these tasks?

While there are seven classes of potentially-exempt workers, executive exemption is rarely considered legitimate unless the employee spends at least 50 percent of their work time engaged in activities which are managerial, such as:

  • handling conflict between employees and staff
  • setting pay and work schedules
  • interviewing new applicants for open positions
  • planning the task roster of workers

Can an Assistant Manager Take Legal Action After Overtime Violations?

If an assistant manager can show that they were entitled to overtime pay but were denied it, they may be eligible to file a lawsuit against their employer. If you think you were wrongly denied overtime pay, Top Class Actions can help connect you with an experienced employment lawyer who can help determine if you have a legal claim.

Join a Free Assistant Manager Overtime Pay Lawsuit Investigation

If you work or worked as an assistant manager at a fast-food restaurant, retail store or supermarket and you perform the same duties as the hourly employees but are classified as “exempt,” you may have been misclassified as exempt and are owed unpaid overtime pay.

Learn More

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.

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