In California, full-time employment entails 40 or more weekly hours. However, California does not have a clear definition of how many hours constitute part-time employment. Part-time workers frequently have less workplace perks than full-time workers. However, if you work more than 30 hours a week and more than 19.5 hours a week, federal law may entitle you to retirement benefits and healthcare benefits.
Read on to learn more about this topic. If you require help from an employment law attorney, contact PLBH at (800) 435-7542 for help.
Are full-time jobs covered by California labor laws?
40 hours a week of work constitutes full-time employment, according to California Labor Code 515 LAB. The conditions for exempt personnel are established using this definition. You must earn at least twice the California minimum wage for full-time employment in order to qualify for several exemptions. The so-called “white collar” exclusions are among them: employees in the administrative, executive, and professional sectors.
If you are a non-exempt employee working more than 40 hours per week, you are entitled to overtime pay in California. Under California overtime legislation, an employee who works more than 8 hours in a single workday is also entitled to overtime pay. The overtime rate for hourly employees is 1.5 times the employee’s hourly rate of compensation. The overtime rate for non-exempt salaried employees is 1.5 times one-fourth of their weekly pay.
What advantages do full-time employees have over part-time employees?
In general, full-time employees receive more benefits at work than part-time employees. Some of these advantages could be parental leave, a set work schedule, paid holidays, paid sick days, paid vacation days, other paid time off like personal days, access to employer-sponsored retirement plans, insurance plans like life, health, and dental insurance, and retirement plans like pensions or 401(k)s are all examples of benefits that employers may offer.
However, some companies decide to offer part-time workers advantages that are not mandated by law. They frequently act in this manner to strengthen loyalty and workplace motivation, lower employee fatigue, recruit superior talent, lower turnover, and improve employee morale.
What privileges do part-time employees in California enjoy?
Part-time employees still enjoy a variety of significant workplace rights. The following are a few of their most crucial rights. The state minimum wage, which is higher in California than in many other states and is even higher in some California counties and cities, like Los Angeles, meal and rest periods, including an unpaid 30-minute meal break for every 5 hours of work, overtime pay, and a workplace free from harassment or discrimination.
Employees who work at least 30 days in a year are entitled to paid sick time, and minimum wage workers who must work a split shift are also entitled to an additional hour’s pay.
What if I’m being misclassified by my company as a part-time worker?
Employers frequently label workers as part-timers while still requiring them to put in 40 hours a week. By denying full-time employees the employment perks they are entitled to, they frequently do this to save money.
You can sue your employer for misclassifying you as a part-time worker if you believe this is the case. Not all of these lawsuits concern misclassified independent contractors. They can also be used by part-time workers who were misclassified. Such claims call for correct employee classification, access to benefits that go along with it, and payment of back pay and benefits that employees were previously denied.
These misclassification claims frequently develop into class actions. You are most certainly being misclassified as a part-time employee along with other employees of the organization if your employer is doing the same to you. To make a decision on how to proceed, it is imperative to speak with an employment attorney. Contact PLBH at (800) 435-7542 now for help.