Is it legal to force exempt salaried employee to work 7 or more days straight?

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Is it legal to force exempt salaried employee to work 7 or more days straight?

I’m an exempt salaried employee who suppose to work 40 hours a week. We are starting a project at work and my boss is basically forcing me to work on the weekends as well on top of my normal hours. The weekends I would be on call, meaning I can’t do anything because of the possibility of being called in to work. The project is expected to last 2 months. So my question is can they legally make me work more than 7 days a week for 2 months or more.

Asked on June 19, 2019 under Employment Labor Law, California

Answers:

M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 4 years ago | Contributor

Exempt or not, in CA, workers are entitled to 1 day of rest in every 7 days. No employer is allowed to require that employees work in excess of 6 days out of a 7 day period. That having been said, employers do have flexibility in how to administer the rest days. Basically, employees must not necessarily take a day off in a 7 day period as long as the rest days are provided for during the same calendar month. So, for example, if an employer requires an employee to work for 21 days straight, this is allowed so long as the employer later provides for the 3 missed rest days at some point during the month. At this point, you may want to consult further with a local employment law attorney or contact the state Department of Industrial Relations for further information.  

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 4 years ago | Contributor

There is no limit on how many hours or days a salaried exempt employee can be required to work or be on call: the labor laws put no restriction on how much such an employee has to work. Therefore, you can be required to work 7 days a week for week after week after week and, because you are salaried exempt, you do not even get any additional oay for this.


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