What are the minimum wage, overtime pay, and recordkeeping requirements?
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If you are a home care agency or other third party employer, effective January 1, 2015, you are required to pay at least the federal minimum wage and overtime pay to any direct care worker you jointly or solely employ, regardless of the worker’s duties. Direct care workers are workers who provide home care services, such as certified nursing assistants, home health aides, personal care aides, caregivers, and companions.

Also effective January 1, 2015, agencies and other third party employers may no longer claim the overtime pay exemption for live-in domestic service workers.

Minimum wage

The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 an hour, though many states have their own minimum wage laws. When a worker is protected by both state and federal minimum wage laws, the worker is entitled to the higher minimum wage. (Check your state minimum wage Check your state minimum wage here .) More >>

Overtime

Workers who are covered under federal overtime pay protections must be paid at a rate not less than one and one-half times their regular rate of pay after 40 hours of work in a workweek. More >>

 

Example

For example, if a covered worker earns $10/hour and works 45 hours in a workweek, then the overtime rate is $15/hour and the worker must be paid $15/hour for the five hours of overtime work in that workweek. The worker would then earn $475 ($10 x 40 + $15 x 5) in that workweek.

Recordkeeping

You are also required to keep basic employee time and pay records for any nonexempt direct care worker you employ, including the hours they work. More >>