Holiday Pay Is an Employer Option That Can Change

Question: In our company, we have been guaranteed five paid holidays. Then the company came out with a memo that said we would not be paid for a holiday if it fell on the weekend. We used to be paid for the holiday even if it landed on the weekend. We would like to know if this is correct or if we are due the money.

--C.P., Fullerton

Answer: Such benefits as holiday pay and vacation pay are not required by law. Employers are free to decline to pay for any holidays or to provide any vacation pay to employees. Therefore, a company is free to change its holiday policy whenever it chooses. Accordingly, it is likely that your employer can change its practice on holiday pay to eliminate pay for holidays that occur on weekends.

However, such a change can only be made as to holidays that occur after the change is announced. Moreover, the answer might be different if the employer somehow had guaranteed to its employees that it would never change its holiday pay policy.

--Michael A. Hood, employment law attorney, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker

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Question: What is the law concerning salaried, exempt employees? My company is currently on a seven-hours-a-day, 35-hour workweek. In October, we will begin working eight hours a day, 40 hours a week and the company does not plan to increase our pay, so we’ll be working an extra five hours at the same salary. Is that legal?

--T.D., La Habra

Answer: The increase of work hours to eight hours per day, 40 hours per week does not violate any wage-and-hour laws. If an employee is on a salaried basis, employment hours can vary at the option of the employer. Simply being salaried does not mean that an employee is also exempt. This is a very common misconception in the workplace.

A non-exempt employee will enjoy the protection of many laws that require rest breaks, lunch breaks and a limitation in duration of employment hours. An employee may have possible rights in this situation if previous promises by the employer have been made regarding the permanency of the work-hour policy, or if the change unlawfully discriminates or retaliates against one particular group of employees.

Unfortunately, often the only recourse for an exempt employee who is asked to work unreasonably lengthy hours may be to quit. The salaried, non-exempt worker at least has a right to overtime pay.

--Don D. Sessions, employee rights attorney, Mission Viejo

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Question: I work as a physician in Orange County. I’ve become aware of something disturbing. Recently, a salaried employee came to me and told me that his new supervisor was insisting that he work seven days a week. Obviously, he was in my office for stress and an inability to continue working. Are there any laws at all that cover salaried employees? Are there any limits at all on the demands that can be placed on them? Do such workers have any recourse other than finding a new job?

--S.H., Mission Viejo

Answer: Certainly there are laws that govern “salaried employees.” A truly exempt, salaried employee is paid for projects or services rendered--not by the hour. There are California State Labor Codes that require a day of rest in a work week of seven days. However, the law also spells out when employers may be allowed an exemption from this requirement.

As long as an employer does not jeopardize the health, safety or well-being of an employee, there can be expectations of meeting project deadlines. But before an employee reaches a point where he or she feels an inability to continue working, I recommend seeking some viable solutions by suggesting your patient talk to his employer. Possibly other work arrangements or additional support staff can be established.

These ideas should be suggested before medical care becomes the only option. Even if the employer does not have any formal grievance procedures or policies for complaining about work schedules, there is usually an “open door” policy in which an employee can attempt to resolve such employment issues.

--Elizabeth Winfree-Lydon, Senior staff consultant, The Employers Group