Sticking to the rules

HRH

If an Employee Manual states that pay dates will be the 15th and the last day of the month and the employer does not pay on those dates (sometimes as much as a week late) - with no apology nor explanation - what would a smart employee (who wants to keep her job) say to the employer? (Am asking on behalf of a Michigan daughter):)

marc

Is there someone in the org she can ask and get a frank answer? This is not acceptable and lots of laws are in place to protect the EEs, including protection from retaliation.

Perhaps a phone call to your states labor department would clear up options, describe how anonymous the process might be and how the retaliation protections work.

She might be working for a company with severe cash flow issues - if that is it, start looking now, the signs are not good. If it is just a matter of being organized and getting to it, then the labor department might be the way to go. Just a little visit from them would clear things up for whomever is responsbile for getting this done on time.

HRH

Thanks - great advice. I know it's not acceptable, but after re-reading an overview of FLSA, I don't see anything specifically illegal. What am I missing??

Hunter1

What should she say? "Hey, where the heck (or another word) is my paycheck???!!" "I kept my part of the deal and worked for you, now its your turn, pay me." Oh, well, that may not work if she wants to retain her job. marc has given you good advice, and its not, to the best of my knowledge, an FLSA issue, but, rather, a state wage payment issue. At least in WI, there's a wage payment statute which controls frequency and regularity of wage payments.
Depending on her relationship with her employer, I'd always give the er the chance to correct an error before going to the 'authorities', so she might, again, depending on the relationship, say something like: "I have financial commitments that I have to keep on a regular basis, can you tell me if I can count on getting paid on a regular basis, if not, why not? How will I know when to expect my pay?"

Down_the_Middle

The answer to your question lies in the particular State regulations that govern payment of wages. The verbiage below is an excerpt from Michigan's wage payment statute and is quite clear.

<<Timing Requirements for Wage Payments in Michigan>>

All employers are subject to Michigan's wage payment law.

Employees of covered employers must be paid at least semimonthly, with wages payable on or before the first day of the month for wages earned in the first half of the preceding calendar month, and on or before the 15th day of the month for wages earned during the last half of the preceding month, or more often if the employer desires. An employer who establishes a monthly payday will be deemed in compliance with the law if he pays on the first day of each calendar month all wages earned during the preceding calendar month. Employees absent on payday must be paid upon demand, and fringe benefits must be paid in accordance with the written contract or policy.