OVERTIME PAY FOR MORE U.S. WORKERS AND AVERAGE WEEKLY WAGE CALCULATIONS

In a previous article, we discussed new overtime rules that will go into effect on December 1, 2016.  These new overtime rules could affect up to 4 Million U.S. workers.  These changes could be significant for Pennsylvania injured workers.  When a worker is injured on the job, the employer is required to prepare a statement of wages that calculates an average weekly wage and a workers compensation rate. With the new overtime rules, this may allow salaried workers who are injured to effectively increase the amount of compensation they would receive in the event they would sustain a work-related injury.

For salaried employees with a fixed weekly rate, the average weekly wage is normally determined by that fixed weekly rate.  However, if a salaried employee converts to an hourly employee eligible for overtime under the new rules, the employer may attempt to calculate the average weekly wage under the old pay structure.  By not including prospective overtime that an employee would be expected to receive the employee’s average weekly wage could be artificially low thereby denying them workers compensation benefits they might otherwise be entitled to, especially if the employee has worked for the employer for less than 13 calendar weeks.

If you believe that your average weekly wage has been calculated incorrectly, it is important that you contact an experienced Pennsylvania workers’ compensation attorney.