Q. I saw a television commercial from a local law firm. It said that employees could get "back-pay" for overtime hours that they worked, but for which they were not compensated. I have been in business for ten years and have about 30 employees. Almost all of them are salaried. Is there any risk that I could have to pay for overtime hours previously worked?A. The short answer to your question is, quite possibly. When you say that almost all of your employees are salaried, we assume you mean that you have determined that they are exempt from receiving overtime pay. Your determination may be correct. On the other hand, it could also be incorrect. If this is the case, you risk fines and/or having to provide "back-pay".One of the most frequent errors we see in small companies is employee misclassification. This is when management wrongly determines that a worker is exempt from overtime and other rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) or incorrectly classifies a worker as an independent contractor. (Independent contractors are also exempt from overtime pay.)
