It was going to happen eventually: Employees sue employers for extra work done

August 12, 2009 – 8:25 am – No Comment

In our day and age, people are hyperconnected; meaning they are always connected to some device where they can be reached. Things, of course, weren’t always this way. Now, if your boss wants to get in touch with you all he or she has to do is pick up the phone or sent out an email. This has led to some employees working while they are off work; either after hours or on off days.

In response to this, a lawsuit was filed in the Eastern District of New York against T-Mobile by employees alleging that they were required to be on call and respond to some customer problems while they were scheduled to be off or weren’t getting paid for the work. During the time they were on call they weren’t getting overtime.

According to the lawsuit, the employees (some former and current), were required to “review and respond to numerous T-Mobile related emails and text messages at all hours of the day and night, whether or not they were logged into T-Mobile’s computer based time keeping system.” The employees were also required to be a part of conference calls during off days and during lunch and other times that they were off the clock.

There was another, similar lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Wisconsin by a real estate worker who wasn’t being paid overtime for responding to maintenance issues after hours.

All of this shows that people are expected and sometimes have to be connected at all times for job security and some employers are taking advantage of that. You should be getting paid for all the hours that you’re working, even if you’re at home. If you work past 40 hours a week, you should be getting paid overtime. This is definitely true if you’re an hourly worker. If you’re a salaried worker, sometimes the line can be a bit blurred, but that isn’t any excuse for your employer to take advantage of you and your constant connection to the world.

Some people are simply addicted to being connected and doing things that involve work. This includes those who have an addiction to work.

If you are checking your email after work then you may not be on the clock for that, but if your boss is asking you to respond to work related emails after hours then you should be getting paid for the work that you’re doing then.