What is the aw regarding salaried employees having to punch in and out on the clock?
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What is the aw regarding salaried employees having to punch in and out on the clock?
I have been a supervisor at my current job for about 5 years. There are about 8 supervisors and 5 managers. In the middle of next month, the VP and our manager are scheduled to have a meeting with all supervisors. Being there for 17 years, I have a good relationship with most managers and 1 is a good friend. I expressed my concerns to him about the meeting and he told me that they want us to start punching in and out for
Asked on December 30, 2016 under Employment Labor Law, Massachusetts
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
First of all, so long as they are receiving their full wage, then having salaried employees punch in and out is perfectly legal be it for safety concerns or other reasons. That is unless this action violates the term of an employment contract or union agreement. Also, it must not constitute any form of legally actionable discrimination. This means that it must not be based on reasons of race, religion, disability age (over 40), etc. Otherwise, not treating all workers the same is perfectly permissable under the law.
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
It is legal to have some salaried employees punch in and out, so long as their salary is not affected by their hours--e.g. they are not paid less for short hours. The punching in and out can be legally used to evaluate you or make promotion or even retention (i.e. termination) decisions, based on, for example, absence; or to evaluate productivity; or for billing or budgeting purposes; etc. The only thing it can't be used for is to reduce your weekly earnings for short hours. And there is no law requiring all employees be treated alike--they *can* treat certain staff differently, legally.
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