I am a working professional in the dental field. I see my own patients and use my own judgement. I make $365/day. I clock in when I get to work, clock out for lunch, then back in, then out when I leave the dental office. If usually arrive 10-15 minutes before my patient. On average I would say I work 8.5 hours a day. I have always just written off that extra half hour of my day as "part of the job".
BUT, the problem is, if my last patient of the day does not show, and I leave an hour early, I am then only compensated for 7 out of the 8 hours in a typical day (meaning I am charged 7/8 of a "day" on my paycheck. I feel that if I am committed to a "daily salary" then that means I am paid my full daily rate whether my last patient comes or not...just as when I work an extra half hour and am not expecting an extra fraction of pay for my day. I feel that if I am bothering to clock in and out, I should be payed based on every minute that I am at work.
Please tell me if what is occurring on my pay check is legitimate or if I an request a different pay method.
It is illegal to pay you a daily rate when you work a full day, even if you work over 8 hours, but then dock you hourly when you do not work a full day. You have a wage claim for overtime and penalties for the entire time you have worked there, or at least four years back. You should file a wage claim with the state Dept. of Industrial Relations, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.
