Unfortunately, some service technician employers do not put their workers first and violate federal and state laws when it comes to paying paychecks late. If this has happened to you and you believe it is deliberate, you may be able to sue your employer. It is your legal right to be paid on time on a day decided between you and your employer.
Service technicians are often called out at any time of the day or night if something such as air-conditioning, refrigeration, electrical systems, fire alarms and security systems break down in a home, a hotel or business. For all this hard work they expect to receive their paycheck regularly.
Late Paycheck Laws
If you have received your paycheck late or you have received no paycheck at all you need to check your states rules regarding the payment of paychecks. You must also check the federal late paycheck laws which should be found in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) as they may not be exactly the same as your state’s.
There are usually both state and federal laws that rule that a service technician employer is required to provide regular paychecks to service technicians. Most service technicians are paid either weekly or every two weeks. If the employer does not pay its service technicians on a particular day, then this could be violating the law.
Examples of State Late Paycheck Laws
The agreement between the service technician and employer sets the employment terms. This includes when wages are to be paid. Late paycheck laws in Washington DC require that employers (except the federal government, the District itself, and employers covered by the Railway Labor Act) are required to pay wages at least twice in each calendar month on regular paydays agreed in advance. There are some jobs of which employees are exempt, including those in administrative, executive, and professional jobs who are paid once a month.
Late paycheck laws in Oregon are that employers must keep regular paydays, such as either weekly or monthly.
Steps to Take When Your Paycheck is Late as a Service Technician
The first step to take If you did not get your paycheck on the usual day is to check the labor laws in your state. Most states rule that service technicians are weekly or at least fortnightly. If you think your employer has violated either federal or state law you may want to do the following:
- Inform your employer in writing explaining you have been receiving late paychecks.
- If there is no response you should consider filing a complaint at your state Labor Department office.
- If the amount owed is quite small you may file a claim with the small claims court.
- One thing you should not do is resign from your job as your employer isn’t legally allowed to fire you just because you have complained about late paychecks.
If the amount owed to you is large you may need help from an employment lawyer who may advise you on your legal options. Employers who willfully violate the law could also face criminal penalties which could include fines and imprisonment
Find Help
If this has happened to you, you may want to contact an employment lawyer who may help you determine if your employer has violated late paycheck law. If it has the employment lawyer may help you file a lawsuit for the unpaid or late wages.
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