by Jim Browne | Aug 7, 2015 | Employment Law, Immigration, Legal Matters Discussed, Worker's Comp
Labor statistics show an increasing number of Hispanic workers are suffering work fatalities and injuries. In Indiana, Bureau of Labor Statistics show a rising trend in Latino work fatalities.
“Hispanic and Latino Workers – Occupational Injuries, Illnesses and Fatalities” – www.in.gov brochure.
Most of Indiana’s Hispanic fatalities and injuries occur in the manufacturing and construction industries. Many Hispanic accidents affecting Hispanics involve motor vehicles and equipment. In construction projects, many Latinos are injured from fall accidents. Another significant cause of injuries to Latinos involves workplace violence.
The attorneys at Legalmente Hablando Indy and Goodin Abernathy LLP regularly represent injured Hispanic workers. We are located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Many of our clients live and work around Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Bloomington, Frankfort, Auburn, Crawfordsville and Richmond. We will travel to visit clients and appear in local courtrooms.
We handle construction accidents, motor vehicle collisions, factory injuries, explosions and burns. Often we give legal advice to Hispanics about work place harassment and violence. Many of our clients are concerned about racial discrimination and immigration issues. Our experience and research address these issues showing why injured Indiana Latinos have legal rights regardless of immigration status. We speak Spanish and fight for our Hispanic clients in Indiana worker’s compensation claims and injury cases.
Hispanics work on risky and dangerous jobs.
“Immigrants Work in Riskier and More Dangerous Jobs in the United States” – PRB.org.
Employers often turn their backs on injured Latino workers because they do not respect their immigration status. The Legalmente Hablando Indy and Goodin Abernathy LLP Indianapolis attorneys open legal claims for both documented and undocumented immigrants. We explain the medical treatment options Indiana workers are owed when injured on the job. Most importantly, we care about our Hispanic clients and work to win the best recoveries the law allows.
Find more information about our Legalmente Hablando Indy at http://www.legalmentehablandoindy.com/ and check out our community involvement on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/LegalmenteHablandoIndy.
by Christopher Clark | Jul 29, 2015 | Employment Law, Legal Matters Discussed, Small Business
A common question that our clients ask us is, “Should my employer be paying me for overtime?” Both Indiana and Federal Law require the payment of overtime wages unless an employee is exempt. Some examples of exempt employees include outside salespeople, teachers, executive, administrative or professional employees, certain farm workers, and employees in certain computer-related occupations. The vast majority of hourly workers are entitled to receive overtime for every hour, over 40 hours, worked in a given week. Current Federal Minimum Wage is $7.25 per hour. Therefore, even if you are paid a salary, your average hourly wage, based on a 40 hour week, must equal $7.25/hr. If you are working more than 40 hours per week, your employer should be paying you time and a half for every hour over 40 worked during the week. A common misconception among employers is that all salaried employees are exempt from the overtime requirements. This is simply not true.
Another area where we often see abuses in wage and hour laws is in the case of tipped employees. Tipped employees are individuals engaged in occupations in which they customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips. The employer may consider tips as part of wages, but the employer must pay at least $2.13 an hour in direct wages.
The employer who elects to use the tip credit provision must inform the employee in advance and must be able to show that the employee receives at least the applicable minimum wage (see above) when direct wages and the tip credit allowance are combined. If an employee’s tips combined with the employer’s direct wages of at least $2.13 an hour do not equal the minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference. Also, employees must retain all of their tips, except to the extent that they participate in a valid tip pooling or sharing arrangement.
Wages required by the FLSA are due on the regular payday for the pay period covered. Deductions made from wages for such items as cash or merchandise shortages, employer-required uniforms, and tools of the trade, are not legal to the extent that they reduce the wages of employees below the minimum rate required by the FLSA or reduce the amount of overtime pay due under the FLSA.
The United States Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is responsible for enforcing some of the nation’s most comprehensive federal labor laws on topics including the minimum wage, overtime pay, record keeping, child labor, family and medical leave, migrant and seasonal worker protections, lie detector tests, worker protections in certain temporary guest worker programs, and the prevailing wages for government-funded service and construction contracts. Collectively, these laws cover most private, state, and local government employment, and protect over 135 million workers in more than 7.3 million establishments nationwide. The Department of Labor has even created an app for employees to keep track of their time to determine if they may be entitled to overtime.
On June 30th, the DOL unveiled a proposed rule that would broaden federal overtime pay regulations to cover nearly 5 million more people and raise the minimum salary threshold required to qualify for the Fair Labor Standards Act’s “white collar” exemption to $50,440 per year in 2016, up from the current $23,660.
Employment law attorneys anticipate significant increases in the number of employees who will be entitled to overtime pay. Thus, even if you are currently considered an exempt employee, you may no longer be considered exempt under the new proposed rules.
If you have questions or concerns about the way your employer administers overtime pay or other employee benefits, please contact the Indianapolis Employment Law Attorneys at Goodin Abernathy, LLP.
by admin | Feb 3, 2015 | Employment Law, Legal Matters Discussed
Employer Has Not Paid You – You Have Options
In Indiana, if you are an hourly employee with an agreed upon wage, your employer is obligated to pay you for the hours you work within ten (10) days of the payment period end. For overtime, an Indiana employee is entitled to 1.5 times his or her hourly rate for any of the hours worked past a 40 hour work-week. If an employer does not make these payments, an individual may have what is known as a wage and hour claim.
Indiana has two statutes, the Wage Claims Statute, Indiana Code §22-2-9, and the Wage Payment Statute, Indiana Code §22-2-5. The Wage Claims Statute is for employees that have either been terminated or are in a labor organization dispute. Individuals with a claim under the Wage Claims Statute must first take their claim through the Indiana Department of Labor.
The Wage Payment Statute is for employees who have voluntarily left employment or are still currently employed.
Under both Indiana statutes, an employee is entitled to liquidated damages ranging from 10% to no more than double the amount of wages due and reasonable attorney’s fees. These damages are in addition to the wages owed.
These statutes are designed to pay individuals what they are due. Immigration status does not matter. Justice Boehm, in a concurring Indiana Supreme Court opinion, wrote:
“I write separately to observe that the facts of this case dramatize the point that the statute confers on all employees the right to recover treble damages and attorney’s fees for failure to pay wages, regardless of the employees’ circumstances. This is perfectly understandable as applied to the vast majority of workers who are dependent on their paychecks for their day-to-day expenses. These employees need the money currently, not at the end of protracted litigation, and often do not have the economic staying power to engage in a court battle over relatively small amounts. A statute providing one party with treble damages and attorney’s fees is a very substantial deterrent to an employer’s playing fast and loose with wage obligations. As applied to claims of most workers this is very understandable legislative policy.”
St. Vincent Hosp. & Health Care Ctr., Inc. v. Steele, 766 N.E.2d 699, 706 (Ind. 2002).
If you have worked, but not been paid, please contact the employment attorneys at Goodin Abernathy, LLP to determine if you have a wage and hour claim. Your time and effort is valuable – talk to us to determine your options for recovering your owed and earned wages.
by Christopher Clark | Jun 4, 2013 | Employment Law, Legal Matters Discussed
Indianapolis Business Journal reporter, Dan Human, recently penned the article, “Explanations Vary for Dearth of Women in Top Rungs of Business.” Many explanations for the lack of top leadership roles held by women in Indiana businesses, as well as the disparity in income levels between men and women are proffered. However, Human writes that despite a glaring gap of women in the tops spots of business, “Experts mostly brush off discrimination as an explanation for the pay gap.”
Nevertheless, discrimination may be playing a role in a company’s decision to pass over an otherwise qualified female candidate for a similarly qualified male. Like any prejudice, there are deep-rooted misconceptions and stereotypes that creep in to the decision-making process. Traditionally, women have had to choose between their careers and their families, but why? And is it fair? If your work environment feels like an old boys club, then it probably is. Proving discrimination, on the other hand, can be a very difficult task. Particularly if your employer is seeking skilled legal counsel when making decisions regarding the promotion or termination of employees. However, your claim can change behaviors in the future bringing greater equality in the workplace.
If you think you may have been the victim of gender discrimination, I would encourage you to talk to an attorney and find out about your rights, as well as the obligations of your employer.
