A Scam?

[Greedkun]

I started a cleaning job at the end of August. It pays $350 monthly. When i started, i did not have a bank account so i could not opt for direct deposit. Towards the end of september, they stopped calling me in to work. When i asked about the situation, they told me they were training someone else and that they also decided not to send paper checks anymore and that i had to do direct deposit. They also stated that i would not be paid until the end of october for the work done in september. I got a bank account (free student account) and called them back to set up direct deposit, but everytime i call, a lady answers that says she is not with the company and cant give me the information. I had someone else call the number and they got my manager. When asked about the situation, he stated he recently had a death in the family and he has to go. He then hung up. I left a message for him to call me back a week and a half ago and everytime i call, he continues to avoid my phone calls. Is there anything I can do about this? If i cant setup the direct deposit, can he refuse to pay me?

 

[Patricia_Young]

You have several issues.

First, you must make at least minimum wage on a workweek (not monthly). When you divide $350 by the number of hours worked in the month, though, does it equal at least $7.25 per hour?

Next, if you worked over 40 hours in any one workweek, you must also receive overtime pay and that would change the calculation above. Did you work over 40 hours in any week?


However, the employer is not totally in the wrong. In your state, you CAN be paid once a month and NC law has no provision about how long after the end of the pay period payment must be issued. Only that the paydays must be "regularly scheduled".

And yes, the employer can require direct deposit in NC. The only requirement is that the employee must be able to select the financial institution.
http://www.nclabor.com/wh/faqs.pdf

However, if the employer refuses to let you submit the bank information, then we have an issue. At this point, I would file a claim with the state DOL.

 

[Greedkun]

There is no issue with the ammount of pay. It was only an hour to an hour and a half a day. Thank you for the answer. Im going to do that.

 

[Patricia_Young]

A scam, as in they are never going to pay you and never intended to pay you? Depends on how the company responds to communication from the state DOL regarding your unpaid wages.

 

[Greedkun]

However, if the employer refuses to let you submit the bank information, then we have an issue. At this point, I would file a claim with the state DOL.

Well, since they can wait to pay me and already stated that I am to be paid on the 29th of October, will i have to wait until then to file the complaint against them or can i go ahead and do it?

 

[Patricia_Young]

Well, since they can wait to pay me and already stated that I am to be paid on the 29th of October, will i have to wait until then to file the complaint against them or can i go ahead and do it?

You could file for the days in August now. Or, since it's so close to 10/29 now, you can wait and see if you need to combine all the days into a single claim.