Two Pennsylvania Laws That Protect Your Right to Get Paid
In Pennsylvania, two important statutes protect your right to be paid a fair wage—and your right to sue to collect that wage, if a dispute arises. They are the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act and the Wage Payment and Collection Law.
The Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act
The Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act sets the rules for minimum wage and overtime in Pennsylvania. Under this law, employers must pay at least the state minimum wage, plus time and a half for hours worked over 40 per week.
There are exceptions to the Minimum Wage Act which allow employers to pay less than the minimum wage under certain circumstances—such as for tipped employees, who are expected to make up the difference in tips—and for employees who meet certain earning thresholds or have specific job titles and duties that are generally expected to be high-earning.
Employers sometimes try to bend the rules around these exceptions, so they can avoid paying minimum wage and overtime for employees who should be eligible. Some tactics they use include:
• Misclassifying an employee as exempt, even though their job duties, pay threshold, and other factors should make them non-exempt from overtime wage requirements.
• Deducting workplace expenses until the employee’s total take-home pay is less than the minimum wage.
• Not notifying employees about changes in minimum wage laws that make them eligible for overtime pay and other protections.
• Paying tipped workers...
(AP) If a government hopes to function, it has to be able to enforce its laws. Our country is no exception, and in fact, the U.S. government is very good at enforcement. So when a big fraud case c...