Problems with guaranteed hours

[Anonymous]

Overtime kicks in only when more than 40 hours are worked in a week. You can work four 10 hour days and not earn any overtime. So overtime rates are not applicable in this instance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Overtime kicks in only when more than 40 hours are worked in a week. You can work four 10 hour days and not earn any overtime. So overtime rates are not applicable in this instance.

This is state dependent... Most states overtime kicks in at 40 hours per week but in a few it starts after 8 hours in a day.

[Anonymous]

Guaranteed hours are not the same as banking hours. Why are so many people clueless about this?

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the responses everyone and for keeping this a productive thread not bogged down in negativity.

I emailed my boss back and told her I'd be happy to help out an extra couple of hours each day but that I'd like to be paid overtime for any hours over 8 that I work in a day. I added that the long days with 4 kids really wear me out and that I don't know how her and her husband do it all the time. She wrote back that of course she would pay me overtime and always expects to and that I'm always free to say I have other plans when she asks me to work a few extra hours. Like I said before, I don't mind helping out and going above and beyond. Guaranteed hours would never make me lazy and ungrateful in fact they do the exact opposite. I work hard EVERY day because I know they appreciate me and the work I do for them and their children. I just wanted to figure out an agreement that we would both be happy with and thankfully it seems to have worked out that way.

[Anonymous]

We work on a flat rate. No overtime. The nanny works more than 40 hours (by a few hours) probably 70% of the time, however our agreement stipulates that when we dictate that she doesn't need to come, she gets paid. Vacation, overnights with grandparents, etc. She also is entitled to 10 paid days off per year 7 vacation and 3 sick, I think. The way I figured it, it's a wash....At the end regardless of why she's off, she's guaranteed a full paycheck every week of the year.

After reading this, does that make us inconsiderate and cheap @ssholes? I really just didn't want to worry about the math and know what my expenses would be each month/week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We work on a flat rate. No overtime. The nanny works more than 40 hours (by a few hours) probably 70% of the time, however our agreement stipulates that when we dictate that she doesn't need to come, she gets paid. Vacation, overnights with grandparents, etc. She also is entitled to 10 paid days off per year 7 vacation and 3 sick, I think. The way I figured it, it's a wash....At the end regardless of why she's off, she's guaranteed a full paycheck every week of the year.

After reading this, does that make us inconsiderate and cheap @ssholes? I really just didn't want to worry about the math and know what my expenses would be each month/week.

Well, your package is not the worst I've seen. It depends on your nanny and what the give and take is between you. I only work a few hours over 40 and still get paid overtime. Whether you are an asshole depends on what other perks you give or whether your nanny has the credentials to warrant a better deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We work on a flat rate. No overtime. The nanny works more than 40 hours (by a few hours) probably 70% of the time, however our agreement stipulates that when we dictate that she doesn't need to come, she gets paid. Vacation, overnights with grandparents, etc. She also is entitled to 10 paid days off per year 7 vacation and 3 sick, I think. The way I figured it, it's a wash....At the end regardless of why she's off, she's guaranteed a full paycheck every week of the year.

After reading this, does that make us inconsiderate and cheap @ssholes? I really just didn't want to worry about the math and know what my expenses would be each month/week.

Well, it might be less complicated for you, but I'm pretty sure it's illegal.

My bosses weren't paying me for extra time; they don't pay for holidays or when THEY take vacations...in the first year I worked for them, they went on vacation 6 times.
I don't get guaranteed hours, either. (I was supposed to, but in the last 3 months there have been 4 holidays or days they took off I didn't get paid for.)
And my boss told me to sign out early last week when she tried to send me home 3 hours early so she could take the baby to the park!
I nearly threw a fit! But in the end I got paid for the day.

A few months ago, I tried to negotiate better terms; they gave me a raise but they offered to pay me LESS than straight time ($10/hr instead of $15/hr) for anything over 8hrs/day.
I was furious about this so I offered to "bank" the hours so I would have some vacation/sick days, and at least get paid $15/hr,
since their main concern seems to be, like you, "knowing what their expenses would be every week".

So far since February, I've banked over 50 hours. But now they expect me to use them for holidays or when THEY go on vacation.
I want to save them for times that I need them...or just go ahead and cash them in, since they're hours I actually worked and didn't get paid for.
And I don't want to have them owing me that much money if the job ends soon...it's starting to feel like it won't end very well.

(Yes, we're having a meeting this week!)

A compromise could be that the "overtime" hours, if not paid, should be multiplied by 1.5.
For example, if your nanny works 4 hours, you'd credit her for 6 hours that she was supposed to work.