What are my rights as an employee in this situation?

Quit

You should be entitled to overtime pay, at the very least.

@judi good one that doesnt exist with this company. We make 350 a week plus commission no mater how many hours we work…usually averages out to about 4 bucks an hour.

You could make a anonymous call to the Department of Transportation letting them know what is going on. Maybe they would call and scare the shit out of your boss. This obviously presents a problems if you are the only truck.

@deni , which is less than the minimum wage and illegal. keep a journal of every hour you work and when you finally quit sue for the balance they owe you.

70 teams equal 70 sets plus of employment and transportation violations. Time to put your heads together and I think out of 140 people you can find a way to make your employment conditions better. You can try and be a whistle blower but I doubt that will affect change sufficient to make that job sincerely worthwhile where collectively 140 people could together impress upon the owner(s) that the need to step up and make their workers feel better about all the hard work the are doing for peanuts. Good luck,

@johnpowell you really think? I guess im worried the company would go under then and i would not get paid…ha…ha

The thing im not sure about is i did sign a contract but….that doesnt make illegal things legal for them, right?

It sounds like the only violations of law are by those people filing erroneous DOT logs. That is not only illegal, but very dangerous. You are putting your lives and the lives of others in serious danger. Salaried and/or commission employment falls under different guidelines in the Fair Labor Standards concerning overtime pay. I wouldn’t break the law and I certainly wouldn’t “fudge” legal documents.

@bk i agree thats the most dangerous thing by far! But even after telling them all this, they just said “we’ll add another fifty bucks to your paycheck this week. Theres nothing else we can do.” Oh thanks! That makes it safer.

What kind of posters are you selling at colleges?

Your obligation is to keep REAL books for DOT. If the company gets a fine, so be it. If you fudge the books, YOU are breaking the law. If a supervisor tells you to fudge the books, then whistle-blowing to the DOT makes a lot more sense. If you are doing it on your own and there is no one above you who TOLD you to do so, you are at fault so be careful here . . .

@deni , if you have it in writing that they are putting you in a situation that pays less than minimum wage then you are in an even better place legally. Start documenting EVERYTHING now. You could probably start a class action lawsuit if an attorney thinks the company is big enough. My son got a check for few hundred dollars from Guitar center a few years later over their “break” policy.

It depends on what your contract says. Contact a labor attorney. First, you ahve see what things they are doing that are illegal. Then you have to find out what to do about it.

@Judi, not everyone is covered under minimum wage laws.

@bkcunningham music movies art stuff like that

@Kayak8 its tricky because if we get a ticket or a fine for anything, our commision is held for ninety days. They told us not to lie in the books, and i havent yet, but luckily we havent been stopped. Anyhow, they said if there were situations where we would be violating DOT laws, tell them and theyd change our schedule. But they know our issue and wont do anything. Soo????!

Follow the law. If it causes conflicts with the scheduled arrival at one of the appointments, let your supervisor know. I was just wondering if you worked for one of those “traveling magazine crew sales” company, @deni. They don’t have a good reputation.

@bkcunningham ; I would think that minimum wage laws were put in place to protect people in this exact situation. I would check with the labor department. I just don’t know which STATE laws would apply to you since you travel around a lot.

@Judi its based in pennsylvania. I am pretty sure it would apply to PA laws then right?

They didn’t tell you to lie with the books because then they’d be liable. This way, you are liable. Can’t you tell them you got stopped by a cop and he let you go but he said he’s going to look into it or something like that?

I would think about a new job if I were you.

She said she was paid a salary plus commission for an outside sales job. The Fair Labor Standards Act lists her job as an exempted job. Do they take Pennslyvania state taxes out of your pay, @deni?

http://www.ehso.com/cssdol/dolsalariedexempt.php

Actually no, they dont…whats that mean? Sorry, id look at that link but im on my phone and its soo slow.

The link is just showing the federal law and the jobs that are exempt from minimum wage laws.

The company doesn’t take out any state taxes from your pay?

@jca its temporary, which is the only reason anyone puts up with it. And it can be a cash cow if you do it right. But i feel like we’re(all of us) getting fucked to a point that im no longer willing to deal with.

Do you actually get a paycheck with a pay stub that itemizes your withholdings? If your state taxes aren’t being withheld by your employer, you are most likely an independent contractor. You will get a form 1099-Misc instead of a W-2 at the end of the year for income tax purposes. You will be responsible to pay your state income taxes.

I would guess, based upon what @bkcunningham said above, that the overtime and all that is not covered. The laws about driving the truck more than a certain amount of hours are still the laws, but you would get in trouble as the driver, who is ultimately responsible for the driving. Just like if you drive a vehicle that has an issue, you are responsible, not the employer.

@bkcunningham ; The IRS has strict guidelines for someone to qualify as an independent contractor and one of them is that you set your own hours. This situation does not apply.

The general rule is that an individual is an independent contractor if the payer has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not what will be done and how it will be done.

We were told that we are considered independent contractors. Wtf

@deni , then you are probably going to be screwed with a tax and social security issue too. You could report them to the IRS, butou are still liable for your share of Social Security (Which is higher if you’re considered self employed.)

Call a labor attorney for a free consult. Document everything, and start saving up for that big check you will have to write the IRS in April. Stay safe, and good luck.

Please feel free and remember to post an update as to how things ultimately turn out for you.

JCA
The Update Lady

First, find yourself another job, before you make the following phone call…..........

Establish proof of the violations. Make copies, photos, etc….....

Then call the IRS and ask for the Criminial Investigation Division. This will get the ball rolling on this company and you just might receive a reward for your information. The IRS can handle the investigation from start to finish. They have authority to investigate everything.

It appears they are violationg many federal and state laws. Are they paying you under the table? Are they taking out taxes and Social Security?

Find another job and make the call.

If you’re working such long hours in such bad conditions and cutting corners on safety and law for so little money then I have to ask: Why continue to do it? You could work reasonable hours, safely and legally, at a fast food place and sleep in your own bed every night… and make more money.

If you were doing something low-paid but “worthwhile” (however you define that) in terms of helping humanity or yourself, then I could see making some sacrifices, but you’re selling posters on college campuses! You could sell felt blanket paintings of Elvis on a street corner and do better than this.

You didn’t sign a contract to sign away your life. You can quit.

@john65pennington: You have to read @deni‘s answers throughout to understand.

Unionize!

My facebook post for today: Happy Labor Day! A big thank you to the people in the Labor movement (My Daddy included) who worked to give us the 8 hour work day, child labor laws, safety in the workplace and the glorious weekend. May we continue to stand together to create fairness for ALL in the workplace. Borrowed from Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families page

@Judi, I think we’ll need to do it all over again in a decade or so if the current trend continues. I’m ready!