Paid for Job Training — Your Right under the Law
Under the terms of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), an employee must be paid for training time that is required by an employer or occurs during an employee’s regularly scheduled shift. However, “training time” need not be considered “work time” if the training in question is outside your normal work schedule, isn’t directly related to your current job or is voluntary. This means if you decide to attend training sessions outside of work in order to acquire new skills toward career development, your employer isn’t required to pay your hourly wage while you attend.
However, under 29 U.S.C. § 207(q), if you lack a high school diploma or haven’t completed the eighth grade, your employer can require you to take up to 10 hours a week of remedial training in math, English or basic skills classes. If your employer asks you to enroll in remedial education classes, you must be paid normal wages for the hours you attend — even if these classes meet on the weekend.
Waiters, Waitstaff and Job Training in the Hospitality Industry
It’s not unusual for restaurants or hotels to require waitstaff to participate in on-the-job training. As a result, employers are required to pay participating waitstaff at least the prevailing minimum wage for the time involved. Additionally, if a waiter, bartender, busser, bar back or other trainee does not receive tips link to Tips page during this time, he or she must be paid at least the full minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.
Not Paid during Training? Contact Leeds, Morelli & Brown, PC
Caterers, restaurants, hotels and cruise lines don’t always tell employees what their rights are under the law. As a result, barkeeps, waiters, housekeepers, sommeliers and bussers are often required to attend job training without being told they must be paid during that training. Unfortunately, some employers in the hospitality industry rely on an employee’s lack of knowledge regarding the law to take advantage of them.
At the employment law office of Leeds, Morelli & Brown, PC , we represent hospitality workers on a contingency fee basis. This means you don’t have to pay us attorney’s fees, regardless of whether or not we win your case. If we win your case, we recover our attorney’s fees from any final award or settlement. This means you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to hire an employment law attorney to demand the compensation owed you.
To learn more about our practice and how we can help you, contact New York employment law attorneys at Leeds, Morelli & Brown, PC, today to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case.
Located in New York City, as well as Nassau County, the attorneys at Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC offer high quality legal services and representation to clients throughout the five boroughs of Manhattan, including Wall Street, Midtown Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island; and throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long island, including the Northshore, the Southshore, and cities such as Garden City, Carle Place, Hempstead, Mineola, Melville, Westbury, Hicksville, Levittown, Freeport, Massapequa, Valley Stream, Long Beach, Glen Cove, Syosset, Huntington, Bayside, Forest Hills, Manhasset, Whitestone, Commack, Brentwood and Riverhead, New York. Leeds Morelli & Brown also extends its practice throughout all the counties of Nassau and Suffolk County, which includes the East end of Long Island, as well as to The Hamptons.
