Legal help
 

Does anyone know if it's illegal not to get payed for hours you have worked but you had forgoten to punch in. You see my bro forgot to punch in and he told his boss that he forgot and she says well i don't know so he's thinking she's thinking of not paying him for those hours she likes to get away with those things. The thing about this is he sign a paper saying if he forgets to punch in you don't get payed. Now my question is is it even legal for her to give him that paper to sign???

I don't see why it would be illegal. It's not that different than signing a waiver saying you can't sue if you get hurt. Besides, if he doesn't clock in, it's his own fault. However, most places (I would assume) have "Time Adjustment" sheets you can fill out for occasions like that.

@ krikkit, was your comment really helping this thread at all? The guys just asking for suggestions, not for you to defend him in court.

And, I don't see why him signing somthing he agreed with would be illegal. He just said that he can't hold the company responsible for him forgetting to do something... How's that illegal. If he wants to get paid he has to show he worked.

It may not be a legally binding agreement depending on the laws of your state. You need to contact your state's Department of Labor and pose them this question; laws regarding wages vary from state to state. In the State of Delaware, 'wages' are explicitly defined as "compensation for labor or services rendered by an employee, whether the amount is fixed or determined on a time, task, piece, commission or other basis of calculation" and wages MAY NOT be withheld for any reason unless permitted by State or Federal law, or for the benefit of the employee (deductions for medical plan, 401k, etc).

I would think that not being able to prove that you actually worked the hours that you say you worked would be a valid reason for not paying someone.

I've done that a few times when I first started working at the college. Luckily, I had bosses that were fairly understanding about someone forgetting to clock in. Instead of punching it in at a time clock, we had some sort of program on the computer where we clock in and out and can edit our time but had to write an explaination for why it was edited. The edited/added time would turn yellow until the supervisor looked it over and approved.

However, many people have figured out how to pull up the time clock on their computers and have clocked in even when they were sitting in their dorms. My main boss tried to fix that by requiring employees to sign a time log as well (though not the best solution).

Him signing that paper basically states that she can legally ignore paying him for those hours. However, if he had witnesses--and he doesn't work for a stipend, but actual minimum-wage or higher pay--then there may be a small chance he can get away with a law suit (there have been harder cases won). Frankly, most bosses will allow for a few slip-ups as long as they trust the employee. However, if the woman is very strict or just a total bitch, then he has a problem.

Like others said, it would mostly depend on the laws in your state, and then also the boss to a degree. Most of the time, if this was an honest slip-up, and your brother is a reliable person who doesn't lie or do other suspicious stuff, most people would just let it slide.

Also, is there a schedule of when they're supposed to work? If your brother knows a lot of people, maybe they can talk to the boss and prove that he was working at his scheduled time (again, if your brother is known to be lazy and miss work, then it'll be harder for the boss to accept).

Beyond this, I'm not sure what else to tell you, other than consult a lawyer (but that's an expensive alternate).

bingo she's a bitch but he can defenitly prove he was there people he knows saw him and he's not the type to slack off he's always doing something. well will find out tommorrow if she won't pay him. And if she doesn't his still going to threaten to take her to court that way she knows he's series.