Ferraro Vega Employment Lawyers can help you if your employer is misclassifying you in Minnesota. When your employer classifies you as exempt or non-exempt, it can have a major impact on your paycheck and other parts of your work life. But it’s not always a positive impact, and when they do it to get around giving you certain benefits, we can help. Set up a free consultation today.
Why Would You Need a Lawyer?
Like most workers in Minnesota, you don’t spend much time thinking about whether you’re classified as exempt or non-exempt—until things start feeling off. That’s because how you’re classified changes the way certain rules apply to you, especially when it comes to overtime pay. All of a sudden, the time you’re putting in doesn’t match what you’re bringing home. That’s usually the point when talking to our lawyers starts to make sense. We can help you with:
- Understanding whether your position should be classified as exempt or non-exempt
- Looking at what you actually do at work—not just your job title
- Reviewing your pay records and figuring out whether you’re missing wages
- Getting documents and other evidence that support your claim
- Handling all the back-and-forth with your employer
- Finding a resolution if your employer won’t correct the issue
Wage laws are there for a reason, but they can be complicated. It’s hard enough just going to work every day without also trying to have to fight to get paid properly. We can take all that on for you while you try to focus on the work.
What’s the Difference Between Exempt and Non-Exempt Employees?
The main difference between exempt and non-exempt employees comes down to overtime.
- Non-exempt employees. Non-exempt employees are your basic hourly workers, and are generally able to get overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours in a workweek. They also have to be paid minimum wage and receive paid meal and rest breaks.
- Exempt employees. These generally don’t receive overtime pay, and are usually salaried workers in upper management. But being paid a salary doesn’t automatically make someone exempt. Employers must meet specific requirements based on both how much an employee is paid and the type of work they do.
While this is fairly straightforward, not every exempt classification is correct. There are situations where employers simply get the rules wrong. But most of the time, it’s a conscious decision where they:
- Call someone a “manager” or “supervisor” even though they don’t actually manage employees
- Pay someone a salary while their work is mostly routine or repetitive
- Assume every salaried employee is automatically exempt
- Expect employees to work long hours without overtime because they aren’t paid hourly
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter why your employer is trying to classify you as exempt. Whether it’s intentional or not, the law is clear. But it can be a bit murkier in real life, so it’s worth looking into what you can do to tell if it’s really happening.
How Can You Tell If You Might Be Misclassified?
Again, your job title isn’t the sole decider on whether you’re an exempt employee or a non-exempt one. It comes down to what you do every day and how much latitude you have. But like any situation, there’s markers to look for if you think you’re being misclassified in Minnesota, such as if:
- You’re paid a salary but perform many of the same tasks as hourly employees.
- You regularly work more than 40 hours a week without overtime pay.
- You’re called a manager but don’t supervise employees or make important decisions.
- You follow detailed instructions and procedures rather than making independent decisions.
- You have little involvement in hiring, firing, scheduling, or employee discipline.
While these markers might be there, it also takes further proof if you want to go forward with a claim. The good news there is that you probably already have a lot of this because it’s found in:
- Records showing the hours you worked
- Pay stubs and payroll records
- Your job description
- Emails, texts, or other workplace communications
- Training materials or performance reviews
- Information from coworkers who understand your role and schedule
When you put all these things together, it gives you pretty clear evidence of being misclassified. But unfortunately, that’s only the starting point. If you want to make things right, it usually takes further steps.
What Steps Do I Need to Take If I’m Being Misclassified?
When you’re being misclassified as an exempt employee in Minnesota, it feels pretty isolating and scary. On top of that, you’re missing out on pay and other benefits that the law says you should be getting. That’s difficult enough, but to make things right, there are few different steps you can take:
- Bringing it up directly. The first step is typically bringing it up with your employer directly, where you can ask questions about your classification and whether your pay matches the work you’re performing. If the issue isn’t fixed, though, you might have to go a step further.
- Administrative claim. If a direct conversation doesn’t work, the next step could be filing a complaint with the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI). Minnesota DLI looks into workplace wage violations and can order your employer to change what they’re doing.
- Filing a lawsuit. You also have the option of going straight to court with a lawsuit, where you can get “damages” for your:
- Unpaid overtime wages and other benefits
- Additional damages available under wage laws
- Attorney’s fees and court costs
Sometimes misclassification is happening to other coworkers on the same level as you. If that happens, you can also band together and file a class action lawsuit.
No matter what steps you decide to take, Minnesota generally gives you two years from the date of your last wage violation to file a claim. That’s usually enough reason to act quickly, but the longer you wait, the harder it can be to find pay records and other evidence that shows what you’ve been through.
Get Help From Ferraro Vega Employment Lawyers If You’ve Been Misclassified as Exempt Minnesota
In Minnesota, it’s pretty clear that you need to be paid based on the work you perform, not how your employer decides to classify you. So if you’ve been wrongly classified as exempt and are missing out on overtime pay and other benefits, it’s frustrating.
But you don’t have to face it alone. At Ferraro Vega Employment Lawyers, we can help you understand your rights and figure out what options might be available. Set up a free consultation today to get started.
