As an hourly employee, every day you clock in and you clock out at work and you expect to be paid for the time you spend working. Not only is that an expectation on your part, but it is also the law.
Employers utilize timekeeping systems to keep track of when employees arrive and leave work each day. Some smaller businesses might still use paper time cards and time clocks, though most large companies have transitioned to electronic timecards so that employees can clock in and out via computers, phone systems and even cash registers. It is fast, easy and convenient.
Unfortunately, what many employees don’t realize is that these electronic timekeeping systems often round up and down, and when they round down it will have an impact on how much money you earn.
Not being paid for all of the hours you work is a form of wage theft. Wage theft includes not being paid minimum wage, not receiving overtime pay, not receiving a final paycheck, not being paid at all or not being paid for the total number of hours worked. If your employer is rounding your hours down, then you could have a wage theft claim.
How Rounding Hurts Your Paycheck
Timekeeping systems often operate on quarter hour intervals. What this means is that if you clock in at 8:52am it will round the time to 9am, and if you clock out at 5:07pm then it will round the time to 5pm. The same thing can happen for your lunch break as well. If you get to work at 8:52am and start working, then you are entitled to being paid for that time.
When the timekeeping system rounds your hours you are not being paid for the work you have done. Those extra minutes can add up to anything from 15 to 30 minutes each day, and if you work five days a week then you are looking at 1.25 hours of work for which you are not being paid. (2.5 hours if you lose time over lunch)
Can An Employer Round Your Hours Down?
It might not seem like much, but the reality is that you are entitled to being paid for all hours worked, so if you are working for those extra 15 minutes each day then you should be paid for them. Not only should you be paid for that time, but by law you are required to be paid for it. Your employer is not allowed to ignore that extra time or round it down to keep you from being paid for it.
An employer could try to make the argument that the reason the timekeeping system rounds your hours down is that the extra 1.25 hours is to keep you from working unauthorized overtime. While this could be true, the issue lies in the fact that if you are working for that extra time then you need to be paid for it and there should be a larger conversation about hours if you find that you cannot fit your work into your normal 8-hour day.
If your employer is rounding your hours down and not paying you for it, either intentionally or unintentionally, then you could have a wage theft case and could be entitled to compensation.
What To Do
The first thing you need to do if you suspect that your employer is rounding your hours down is to determine what is happening, and how. To do that, you need to know how many hours you work each week.
If you work a standard 40 hour week then it should be easy to see if you are being paid for that 1.25 hours (or any additional increment of time above an 8-hour day) by keeping track of your hours yourself and comparing them to your timecard, which should be an accurate representation of the hours you work each week.
You can also compare your hours to your paystub to see if you are being paid for it. If you work more than 40 hours each week then that additional 1.25 hours would be considered overtime, but if you work less than that you should be able to do the math by multiplying the number of hours you believe you worked with your pay rate. If that number is different than your paystub then your employer is likely rounding your hours down.
You should speak with human resources or payroll to find out if there is a mistake being made. In most cases, HR should be able to help you fix the problem. However, if they do not correct the error then you could have a wage theft claim.
Speak With An Attorney
If you suspect that you have been the victim of having your hours rounded down by your employer, then you have a few options. You can file a private lawsuit against your employer or you can file a claim with the Department of Labor Wage and Hours Division (WHD). Either option could provide a means to recover the lost wages you are owed.
An experienced employment attorney will be able to provide you with expert guidance as you navigate the complexities of your case. Filing a lawsuit or a claim against your employer can be a very stressful experience so it helps to have someone with experience advocating on your behalf to ensure that you receive the maximum damages to which you are entitled.
While hiring an employment attorney does not guarantee that you will win your case, it will greatly improve your chances of a favorable outcome. You should meet with an employment attorney for a consultation to review your case and determine what your options are. In many cases they will offer a free or reduced fee consultation, and at that point they will review their fee structure. Many employment attorneys will work on a contingency basis so that you do not have to pay anything up front and you will only pay if you win your case.
For more information about how an employment attorney could help you, fill out a free case evaluation.
