Employment · Louisiana

Can I sue for unpaid overtime in Louisiana?

the short answer

Past 40 hours in a workweek you are owed one and a half times your regular rate. The federal rule counts by the week and not by the day, so an eleven-hour Monday is not overtime if the week stops at 40, and two weeks may not be averaged together. Nothing in it requires extra pay for nights, weekends or holidays.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

everywhere in the u.s.

governing statute29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1)source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

penaltyThe unpaid overtime, and an additional equal amount again as liquidated damages. The court must also allow a reasonable attorney's fee and the costs of the action (29 U.S.C. § 216(b)).source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

limit2 yearssource ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

alsoTwo years to sue, or three if the violation was willful (29 U.S.C. § 255(a)). The clock runs paycheck by paycheck, so every week you wait drops a week off the back of the claim.source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

in this state

Where do you report unpaid overtime in Louisiana?

free route

Louisiana has no state minimum wage law and no state overtime rule behind it, so the free route here is the federal Wage and Hour Division. A complaint to it costs nothing, and by law the Division may not disclose your name, what you complained about, or that a complaint exists.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

Which court hears a case like this in Louisiana?

which court

Small claims division

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

How much can you sue for in Louisiana small claims court?

small claims limit

$5,000

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

exceptions: The division awards money and equitable relief but cannot issue an injunction, and class actions are barred. In the City Court of East St. Tammany the limit is instead whatever a justice of the peace court may hear.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

What else should you know in Louisiana?

also

The federal Department of Labor's state table lists Louisiana as having no state minimum wage law, so the rule above is the whole rule here and nothing is missing from this page.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

your situation

That is the rule. Whether it is your answer is a different question.

Everything above is the law as it reaches everyone in Louisiana. What it means for you turns on facts only you have. Tell us what happened and we'll ask the same questions a lawyer would — about 90 seconds, free, and anonymous.

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