Federal Wages and Hours Laws: Your Complete Guide

Federal wages and hours laws protect workers’ right to fair pay for all hours worked. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) establishes the federal minimum wage at $7.25 per hour, requires overtime pay at 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 per week, and sets strict child labor protections. While many states exceed these federal minimums, the FLSA provides baseline protections for millions of American workers.

Understanding the Fair Labor Standards Act

The Fair Labor Standards Act is the cornerstone of federal wage and hour protection. Passed in 1938 and amended many times since, the FLSA establishes fundamental labor standards that apply to most private and public sector employees in the United States. The law is enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

The FLSA covers four main areas: minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping requirements, and child labor standards. These protections apply to employees of enterprises that have annual gross sales of at least $500,000, or employees engaged in interstate commerce. Interstate commerce is interpreted broadly and includes handling goods or materials that have moved across state lines, making phone calls to other states, or processing credit card transactions.

Individual employees may be covered even if their employer is not, if they regularly engage in interstate commerce. This broad coverage means the FLSA protects the vast majority of American workers. However, certain workers are explicitly exempt from some or all FLSA protections, including executive, administrative, and professional employees who meet specific salary and duty tests.

Understanding whether you’re covered by the FLSA is the first step in protecting your wage and hour rights. If you’re unsure whether the FLSA applies to you, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division can help determine coverage.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor – Fair Labor Standards Act

Federal Minimum Wage: Current Requirements

The federal minimum wage has been $7.25 per hour since July 24, 2009. This rate applies to covered nonexempt workers throughout the United States. Your employer must pay you at least $7.25 for every hour you work, with limited exceptions for tipped employees, student workers, and workers with disabilities under special certificates.

Who Must Receive Minimum Wage

All covered nonexempt employees must receive at least the federal minimum wage. This includes full-time workers, part-time workers, temporary workers, and seasonal employees. Your employer cannot pay less than minimum wage regardless of how your company structures compensation, the job title you hold, or whether you receive other benefits.

Minimum wage applies to all compensable work time. This includes time spent in required training, mandatory meetings, and preparations necessary for your work. If your employer requires you to arrive early to set up equipment or stay late to close a facility, that time counts as work time subject to minimum wage requirements.

Some employers incorrectly believe they can pay less than minimum wage during training periods or probationary periods. This is generally illegal under federal law. From your first hour of work, you must receive at least the federal minimum wage unless you fall into a specific exemption category.

Tipped Employee Minimum Wage

Federal law allows employers to pay tipped employees a lower direct cash wage of $2.13 per hour, as long as tips bring total compensation to at least $7.25 per hour. This is called the tip credit system. If your tips plus the $2.13 cash wage don’t equal $7.25 per hour, your employer must make up the difference.

To use the tip credit, employers must inform employees about the tip credit provision and prove that employees receive enough tips to make up the difference. Employees must be allowed to keep all tips except in valid tip pooling arrangements that don’t include managers or supervisors.

Many states have eliminated or reduced the tip credit, requiring employers to pay tipped workers the full state minimum wage before tips. This is one area where state law frequently provides stronger protections than federal law.

Youth Minimum Wage

Employers may pay workers under age 20 a youth minimum wage of $4.25 per hour during their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment. After 90 days or when the worker turns 20, whichever comes first, the employee must receive the regular federal minimum wage.

Employers cannot displace other workers to hire youth minimum wage workers. They cannot fire employees or reduce hours to hire workers at the youth wage. This provision is designed to encourage hiring young workers without creating incentives to replace adult workers.

Student and Disability Certificate Programs

The Department of Labor can issue special certificates allowing employers to pay less than minimum wage in limited circumstances. Full-time students working in retail, service, agriculture, or for their college may be paid 85% of minimum wage under student certificates. Workers with disabilities that impair earning capacity may be paid commensurate wages under Section 14(c) certificates.

These certificate programs face ongoing scrutiny and many states have eliminated sub-minimum wage provisions. The disability certificate program in particular has been criticized and is being phased out in several states in favor of competitive integrated employment.

Source: DOL Minimum Wage Information

Federal Overtime Requirements Under FLSA

The FLSA requires covered employers to pay overtime at 1.5 times your regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. This overtime premium compensates workers for extended hours and encourages employers to hire additional workers rather than overworking existing staff.

The 40-Hour Threshold

Federal overtime triggers at 40 hours per workweek, regardless of how those hours are distributed. A workweek is any fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours (seven consecutive 24-hour periods). Your employer establishes the workweek, and it doesn’t have to match the calendar week.

If you work 45 hours in a workweek, you must receive your regular rate for 40 hours plus 1.5 times your regular rate for the 5 overtime hours. Working long days doesn’t trigger federal overtime unless your weekly total exceeds 40 hours. This differs significantly from states like California, which require daily overtime after 8 hours.

Example: James earns $16 per hour and works 50 hours in one week. His pay calculation is: 40 regular hours at $16 ($640) plus 10 overtime hours at $24 ($240), totaling $880 for the week.

Calculating Your Regular Rate

Your regular rate includes all compensation for hours worked, not just your hourly wage. When calculating overtime, employers must include nondiscretionary bonuses, shift differentials, and certain other compensation in your regular rate.

For example, if you earn a $20 hourly wage plus a $200 production bonus in a week you worked 50 hours, your regular rate is $24 per hour ($1,200 total compensation divided by 50 hours). Your overtime rate for that week would be $36 per hour (1.5 times $24), not the $30 per hour your employer might calculate using only your base hourly rate.

Common forms of compensation that must be included in the regular rate include:

Nondiscretionary bonuses (performance bonuses, attendance bonuses)
Shift differentials and hazard pay
Commissions based on sales
Piece-rate payments
On-call pay and callback pay

Certain payments can be excluded from the regular rate calculation, including discretionary bonuses, gifts, reimbursed expenses, premium pay for weekend or holiday work, and contributions to bona fide benefit plans.

Compensatory Time Off

Private sector employers cannot offer compensatory time off instead of overtime pay under federal law. If you work overtime, your employer must pay you in wages at the overtime rate. Public sector employers have limited ability to offer comp time under strict conditions, but private employers must always pay overtime in cash.

Some employers illegally offer “comp time” to avoid paying overtime wages. This violates federal law for private sector workers. If your employer offers you time off instead of overtime pay, this is likely a wage and hour violation.

Common Overtime Violations

Employers sometimes violate federal overtime laws through these illegal practices:

Off-the-Clock Work: Requiring work before clocking in or after clocking out. All work time must be recorded and compensated.

Automatic Deduction of Breaks: Automatically deducting 30-minute meal breaks whether taken or not. If you worked through the break, those 30 minutes count toward overtime calculations.

Averaging Hours: Averaging hours across multiple weeks to avoid overtime. Each workweek stands alone for overtime calculations.

Misclassifying Employees: Claiming workers are exempt when they don’t meet exemption requirements. Job titles don’t determine exemption—duties and salary levels do.

Comp Time Offers: Offering time off instead of overtime pay in private sector employment.

Source: DOL Overtime Pay Requirements

Exempt vs Nonexempt Employees: Who Gets Overtime?

Not all employees receive overtime protection under the FLSA. Certain employees are “exempt” from overtime requirements if they meet specific tests for salary level, salary basis, and job duties. These are called white-collar exemptions.

The Three-Part Exemption Test

To be exempt from overtime, employees must meet all three requirements:

1. Salary Level Test: Employees must earn at least $684 per week ($35,568 annually) on a salary basis. This threshold increased from $455 per week in 2020. Highly compensated employees have a higher threshold of $107,432 annually.

2. Salary Basis Test: Employees must receive a predetermined salary that doesn’t vary based on quality or quantity of work. Exempt employees receive the same salary each pay period regardless of hours worked or work performed.

3. Duties Test: Employees must perform exempt job duties as their primary responsibility. The FLSA establishes specific duties tests for executive, administrative, professional, computer, and outside sales exemptions.

All three elements must be satisfied. An employee earning $80,000 annually isn’t automatically exempt if their job duties don’t meet an exemption test. Similarly, an employee with executive duties isn’t exempt if they earn less than $684 per week.

Executive Exemption

Executive employees are exempt if they:

Have primary duty of managing the enterprise or a department/subdivision
Customarily and regularly direct the work of at least two full-time employees
Have authority to hire or fire, or their recommendations are given particular weight

Managing means conducting interviews, selecting and training employees, setting work schedules, directing employees’ work, determining work techniques, apportioning work among employees, handling employee complaints and grievances, disciplining employees, and determining the rate and pace of work.

A retail store manager who supervises employees, sets schedules, and makes hiring recommendations likely qualifies. An assistant manager who sometimes oversees employees but primarily performs the same duties as subordinates likely doesn’t qualify.

Administrative Exemption

Administrative employees are exempt if they:

Have primary duty of performing office or non-manual work directly related to management or general business operations
Exercise discretion and independent judgment on significant matters

This exemption requires more than administrative duties in a general sense. The work must relate to running the business itself rather than producing the product or service the business sells. Human resources staff, accounting personnel, marketing employees, and administrative assistants may qualify if they meet the discretion and significance requirements.

Simply having “administrator” in your job title doesn’t make you exempt. A purchasing clerk who follows established procedures isn’t exempt even though the work relates to business operations. The exemption requires genuine discretion and judgment about matters of significance to the business.

Professional Exemption

Learned professional employees are exempt if they:

Perform work requiring advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning
Acquired advanced knowledge through prolonged specialized intellectual instruction (typically a degree)
Exercise discretion and judgment

Doctors, lawyers, engineers, architects, teachers, and scientists generally qualify. The exemption requires genuine professional work, not just technical or specialized work. Licensed practical nurses typically don’t qualify because the work doesn’t require advanced knowledge from prolonged specialized instruction, while registered nurses may qualify.

Creative professionals are exempt if they perform work requiring invention, imagination, originality, or talent in a recognized artistic or creative field. Musicians, writers, actors, and graphic artists may qualify if their work is truly creative rather than routine.

Computer Employee Exemption

Computer employees are exempt if they meet the salary test (or earn at least $27.63 per hour) and their primary duties involve:

Application of systems analysis techniques and procedures
Design, development, documentation, analysis, creation, testing, or modification of computer systems or programs
Design, documentation, testing, creation, or modification of computer programs related to machine operating systems

This exemption applies to computer systems analysts, programmers, software engineers, and similar workers. It doesn’t apply to employees who manufacture or repair computer hardware, or employees whose work doesn’t require the theoretical and practical application of specialized computer knowledge.

Outside Sales Exemption

Outside sales employees are exempt if they:

Have primary duty of making sales or obtaining orders or contracts
Customarily and regularly work away from the employer’s place of business

This exemption has no salary requirement. True outside sales representatives who spend most of their time visiting customers are exempt. Inside sales representatives who sell by phone from an office are not exempt under this category, even if highly compensated.

Blue-Collar Workers Are Never Exempt

Federal regulations make clear that the overtime exemptions don’t apply to manual laborers or other blue-collar workers who perform repetitive operations with their hands. Nonmanagement production-line employees and maintenance workers are always entitled to overtime regardless of how much they earn, because such workers don’t meet the duties tests for exemption.

Police officers, firefighters, paramedics, and similar first responders are also entitled to overtime under federal law, though special rules apply to how their overtime is calculated.

Source: DOL Fact Sheet #17A: Exemption for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Computer & Outside Sales Employees

Recordkeeping Requirements for Employers

The FLSA requires employers to keep accurate records of hours worked and wages paid. These recordkeeping requirements protect employees by creating documentation of potential violations and help the Department of Labor enforce wage and hour laws.

What Employers Must Track

Employers must maintain records showing:

Employee’s full name and social security number
Address, including zip code
Birth date if younger than 19
Gender and occupation
Time and day of week when workweek begins
Hours worked each day and total hours worked each workweek
Basis of wage payment (hourly rate, salary, etc.)
Regular hourly pay rate
Total daily or weekly straight-time earnings
Total overtime earnings for the workweek
All additions to or deductions from wages
Total wages paid each pay period
Date of payment and pay period covered

These records must be preserved for at least three years. Records used to calculate wages (time cards, piece work tickets, wage rate tables, work schedules) must be preserved for two years.

Employee Access to Records

While the FLSA doesn’t explicitly require employers to provide pay records to employees on request, many states have laws requiring access to payroll records. Employees can file FOIA requests for records held by the Department of Labor if their employer was investigated.

Maintaining your own records of hours worked is smart practice. Keep a personal log of start times, end times, and break times. Photograph time clocks or timekeeping systems. Save all pay stubs. These personal records help if you later need to prove wage violations.

Employer Recordkeeping Violations

Employers who fail to keep accurate records face serious consequences. When records are inadequate and disputes arise about hours worked or wages owed, courts accept the employee’s reasonable estimates of hours worked. Employers who failed to maintain required records cannot use their own lack of documentation as a defense.

This evidentiary rule helps employees prove wage theft even when employers destroyed or never maintained proper records. If you can provide a credible estimate of hours worked and your employer has no records disproving your account, courts will accept your version.

Source: DOL Recordkeeping Requirements

Child Labor Laws Under FLSA

Federal child labor provisions protect young workers from exploitation and dangerous working conditions. These rules balance the benefits of work experience with the need to protect children’s health, well-being, and educational opportunities.

Age-Based Restrictions

Under Age 14: Generally cannot be employed except in limited situations like delivering newspapers, working for parents in non-hazardous jobs, or performing in entertainment.

Ages 14-15: May work outside school hours in non-manufacturing, non-mining, non-hazardous jobs under these restrictions:

No more than 3 hours on school days
No more than 18 hours during school weeks
No more than 8 hours on non-school days
No more than 40 hours during non-school weeks
Only between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. (extended to 9 p.m. June 1 through Labor Day)

Ages 16-17: May work unlimited hours in non-hazardous jobs. No federal restrictions on hours worked, though many states impose additional restrictions. Cannot perform hazardous work as defined by the Secretary of Labor.

Age 18 and Older: No federal restrictions. May work in hazardous occupations and unlimited hours.

Hazardous Occupations Orders

The Secretary of Labor has declared certain occupations too dangerous for workers under age 18. These Hazardous Occupations Orders (HOs) prohibit minors from working in or around:

Manufacturing or storing explosives
Motor vehicle driving and outside helper work
Coal mining
Logging and sawmilling
Power-driven woodworking machines
Exposure to radioactive substances
Power-driven hoisting apparatus
Power-driven metal forming, punching, and shearing machines
Mining operations
Meat packing or processing
Power-driven bakery machines
Power-driven paper products machines
Manufacturing brick, tile, and related products
Power-driven circular saws, band saws, and guillotine shears
Wrecking, demolition, and shipbreaking
Roofing operations
Excavation operations

Limited exemptions exist for apprenticeship programs and student-learner programs under strict conditions. Employers who claim these exemptions must comply with detailed documentation requirements.

Enforcement and Penalties

Child labor violations carry serious penalties. The Department of Labor can assess civil penalties up to $15,138 per violation. Willful violations that cause death or serious injury to a minor can result in penalties up to $68,801 per violation. Criminal penalties including fines and imprisonment apply to willful violations.

States often have stricter child labor laws than federal requirements. When state and federal standards differ, employers must follow the stricter standard.

Source: DOL Youth & Labor

Enforcement: The Wage and Hour Division

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) enforces the FLSA and related federal wage and hour laws. WHD investigators have authority to examine employer records, interview employees, and determine whether violations occurred.

How to File a Complaint

You can file a complaint with the WHD if you believe your employer violated federal wage and hour laws. The process is free and doesn’t require an attorney. You can file online, by phone, by mail, or in person at any WHD office.

Filing Methods:

Online: Submit a complaint through the WHD website
Phone: Call 1-866-4US-WAGE (1-866-487-9243)
In Person: Visit any WHD district office
Mail: Send written complaint to nearest WHD office

Your complaint should include your name and contact information, employer’s name and address, type of work you perform, and description of the violation. Include specific details like pay rate, hours worked, and how wages were calculated.

The Investigation Process

After receiving a complaint, WHD determines whether to investigate. Investigations may include:

Reviewing employer payroll records
Interviewing employees
Inspecting workplace conditions
Calculating back wages owed

WHD does not have to reveal who filed the complaint, though employers sometimes guess. Federal law prohibits retaliation against employees who file complaints or participate in WHD investigations.

Remedies Available Through WHD

If WHD finds violations, the agency can:

Require payment of back wages
Assess liquidated damages equal to back wages owed
Impose civil monetary penalties
Seek criminal prosecution for willful violations
Obtain court orders (injunctions) preventing future violations

WHD supervises payment of back wages to employees. In fiscal year 2022, WHD recovered over $230 million in back wages for more than 190,000 workers.

Limitations of WHD Enforcement

WHD prioritizes cases based on factors including number of employees affected, amount of potential violations, and employer’s history of violations. Not every complaint results in investigation. WHD focuses resources on cases with greatest impact.

WHD cannot award compensatory damages, reinstate employees, or address discrimination claims. For these remedies, you may need to file a private lawsuit or complaint with other agencies like the EEOC.

The statute of limitations for FLSA violations is two years from the violation date, or three years for willful violations. This time limit applies whether you file a WHD complaint or a private lawsuit.

Source: DOL How to File a Complaint

When State Law Provides Stronger Protections

Many states have minimum wage and overtime laws that provide greater protections than federal law. When both federal and state laws apply, employers must follow the law that provides the greatest benefit to employees.

State Minimum Wages Exceeding Federal

As of 2025, 30 states and the District of Columbia have minimum wages higher than the federal $7.25 per hour. State minimum wages range from $8 per hour to over $16 per hour. Some states index minimum wage to inflation, causing automatic annual increases.

Examples of State Minimum Wages (2025):

California: $16.50 per hour
Washington: $16.28 per hour
Massachusetts: $15.00 per hour
New York: $15.00-$16.00 (varies by region)
Colorado: $14.42 per hour

If you work in a state with a higher minimum wage, your employer must pay the higher state rate. Federal minimum wage serves as a floor, but states can require more.

State Daily Overtime Requirements

Some states require overtime pay for hours worked beyond a certain number in a single day, not just weekly totals over 40 hours. California requires overtime after 8 hours per day and double time after 12 hours per day. Alaska requires overtime for hours over 8 per day. Nevada requires overtime for hours over 8 per day if the employee earns less than 1.5 times the minimum wage.

These daily overtime requirements significantly increase pay for employees working long shifts. An employee working four 10-hour shifts receives overtime under state law but might not under federal law (40 total hours).

State Exemption Rules

Some states have stricter requirements for overtime exemptions. California requires exempt employees to earn at least twice the state minimum wage (over $66,560 annually in 2025) and meet stricter duties tests. New York has salary thresholds that vary by region and employer size.

An employee who qualifies as exempt under federal law might be nonexempt under state law, entitling them to overtime pay. Always check your state’s requirements in addition to federal rules.

State Meal and Rest Break Laws

Federal law doesn’t require meal breaks or rest breaks (except for nursing mothers). Many states mandate meal and rest breaks for employees. California requires 30-minute meal breaks and 10-minute rest breaks. Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Illinois, and other states have similar requirements.

If your state requires breaks and your employer denies them, you may have state law claims even though federal law doesn’t provide this protection.

State-Specific Wage and Hour Guides

Every state has unique wage and hour laws that may provide stronger protections than federal law. Select your state below to learn about state-specific minimum wage, overtime, break requirements, and final paycheck rules:

West Coast States

wages and hours
Washington – Wages and Hours Hub – $16.28 minimum wage, no tip credit, paid sick leave requirements
Oregon – Wages and Hours Hub – Tiered minimum wage by region, predictive scheduling in some cities

Northeast States

wages and hours
Pennsylvania – Wages and Hours Hub – $7.25 minimum wage (federal), state overtime rules, final paycheck requirements
Massachusetts – Wages and Hours Hub – $15.00 minimum wage, blue laws, earned sick time

Southern States

wages and hours
Florida – Wages and Hours Hub – $12.00 minimum wage (rising to $15 by 2026), annual adjustments
Georgia – Wages and Hours Hub – $5.15 state minimum (federal $7.25 applies to most workers), limited state protections
North Carolina – Wages and Hours Hub – $7.25 minimum wage (federal), state wage and hour act, promised wage requirements

Midwest States

Illinois – Wages and Hours Hub – $14.00 minimum wage, One Day Rest in Seven Act, wage payment and collection act
Ohio – Wages and Hours Hub – $10.45 minimum wage (indexed to inflation), state overtime rules

Federal vs State Law: Which Applies?

Understanding the relationship between federal and state wage and hour laws is crucial to knowing your rights. The general rule is simple but important: when both laws apply, employers must follow whichever law provides the greatest benefit to the employee.

The More Protective Standard Wins

If federal law requires $7.25 minimum wage and state law requires $15.00, the employer must pay $15.00. If federal law requires overtime after 40 hours per week and state law requires overtime after 8 hours per day, the employer must pay overtime under both standards—whichever results in more overtime pay.

This “highest standard” rule means you receive the best of both federal and state protections. Employers cannot choose the law more favorable to them or argue that complying with one law exempts them from the other.

When Federal Law Provides the Only Protection

Some states have no minimum wage laws or have minimum wages lower than federal standards. In these states, federal law provides the operative protections for covered employees. Georgia and Wyoming have state minimum wages of $5.15, but covered employees still receive the federal $7.25 minimum wage.

Five states have no state minimum wage law: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Covered employees in these states receive federal minimum wage protections.

When Only State Law Applies

Some workers are covered by state wage laws but not federal law. This can occur when:

The employer doesn’t meet the FLSA’s $500,000 gross sales threshold
The employee doesn’t engage in interstate commerce
The employee works for a state or local government performing traditional government functions

In these situations, state law provides the only wage and hour protections. This makes understanding your state’s laws essential even if you think federal law doesn’t apply to you.

Coordinating Federal and State Enforcement

You can file complaints with both the federal DOL Wage and Hour Division and your state’s labor department. In some states, the agencies coordinate investigations. In others, they work independently. Filing with both agencies ensures maximum enforcement coverage.

Some violations might be prohibited by state law but not federal law, or vice versa. Filing with both agencies ensures all violations are investigated under all applicable laws.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my employer pay me cash without tracking hours?

No. Employers must track hours and pay at least minimum wage for all hours worked, regardless of payment method. Paying cash doesn’t exempt employers from wage and hour laws. “Off the books” payment arrangements violate federal law and deny you protections like unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, and Social Security credits.

Does working salary mean I’m not entitled to overtime?

Not necessarily. Being paid a salary doesn’t automatically make you exempt from overtime. You must meet the salary level test ($684 per week minimum), be paid on a salary basis, and perform exempt job duties. Many salaried employees are entitled to overtime if their duties don’t meet an exemption test.

Can my employer require me to work off the clock?

No. All time your employer requires you to work must be tracked and compensated at least at minimum wage. This includes time spent putting on required uniforms, attending mandatory meetings, completing required paperwork, or cleaning and closing. Off-the-clock work violates federal law.

What if my employer says we’re too small for FLSA to apply?

The FLSA covers most employers regardless of size. Enterprise coverage requires $500,000 in annual gross sales, but individual coverage applies to employees who engage in interstate commerce, which is interpreted very broadly. Contact the DOL Wage and Hour Division to determine if you’re covered.

Can my employer deduct for cash register shortages or broken equipment?

Federal law allows deductions that don’t reduce your pay below minimum wage or cut into overtime compensation. Many states prohibit these deductions entirely or impose stricter requirements. Deductions that bring your effective hourly rate below minimum wage violate federal law.

How long do I have to file a claim for unpaid wages?

The FLSA statute of limitations is two years from the violation date, or three years for willful violations. Many states have longer time limits. File complaints as soon as possible to preserve your rights and maximize recovery.

Will my employer find out if I file a complaint with the Department of Labor?

The Department of Labor tries to protect complainant confidentiality, but employers often deduce who filed based on the claims investigated. Federal law prohibits retaliation against employees who file complaints, participate in investigations, or assert wage rights. Retaliation itself violates federal law and creates additional claims.

Take Action to Protect Your Wage Rights

Federal wage and hour laws exist to ensure you receive fair pay for every hour worked. If your employer violates these rights by paying less than minimum wage, denying overtime, or requiring off-the-clock work, you have options.

Start by documenting violations. Keep personal records of hours worked, pay received, and any communications about your compensation. Save all pay stubs, time records, and employment documents.

Consider filing a complaint with the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. The process is free, confidential, and doesn’t require an attorney. WHD investigates violations and can recover back wages on your behalf.

You may also consult an employment attorney about filing a private lawsuit under the FLSA. Many employment lawyers offer free consultations and work on contingency, meaning you pay nothing unless you recover money. Attorney representation may result in higher settlements and can include damages not available through WHD complaints.

Don’t wait. Statutes of limitations restrict how far back you can recover wages. The sooner you act, the more wages you can recover and the stronger your documentation will be. Your right to fair pay is protected by federal law—assert it.

Get Help Recovering Unpaid Wages

If your employer has violated federal wage and hour laws, you may be entitled to back pay, liquidated damages, and attorney’s fees. Get a free case review from an employment law expert who can evaluate your claim and explain your options.

Disclaimer: The information provided on this page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Employment laws vary by state and change frequently. For advice specific to your situation, please consult with a licensed employment attorney in your state. Employment Law Aid is not a law firm and does not provide legal representation.

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