Most workers should receive time-and-a-half or 1.5 times their hourly rate for each hour worked over 40 hours in a week. There are some exceptions, but employers often make up exceptions that don’t exist. For example, some employers call their employees “independent contractors” even though they’re really employees entitled to overtime. Call us if you’re wondering if you are entitled to overtime.

In Maryland, the minimum wage is currently $15.00/hour. In Montgomery County, the minimum wage is $17.15/hour for employers with 51 or more employees, $15.50/hour for employers with 11-50  employees, and $15.00 for employers with 10 or fewer employees. In Howard County, the minimum wage is $15.00/hour for employers with 15 or more employees and $15.00/hour for smaller employers.

You might! An employer cannot simply call your pay a “salary” to avoid minimum wage and overtime obligations. You have the right to minimum wage and overtime unless your job falls under one of the exceptions listed by the Maryland Department of Labor.

In Maryland, you generally have three years from the date of the wage violation to file a complaint. In other words, if you’re owed overtime from work you did more than three years ago, it’s too late. But if you’re owed overtime from work you did within the last three years, you can still bring a claim.

If you travel directly from one worksite to another, then the employer may be required to pay you for that travel time.

If your employer has given you proper notice that you’re a tipped worker, then they may pay you the $3.63 minimum wage for tipped workers so long as your hourly wage, including tips, never falls below the full minimum wage. If your average rate is less than the full minimum wage, your employer has to make up the difference.

No. Your employer is required by law to pay you for work that you’ve done.

Retaliation is illegal. If your employer retaliates against you, you may be eligible to: get your job back if you’ve been fired, receive monetary damages, or file a criminal charge against your employer. Call us to discuss the specifics of your case.

Even if you don’t have a union, the law protects you if you try to improve your working conditions on behalf of a group. Your employer cannot retaliate against you when you voice concerns for you and your co-workers.