Residential Property Managers work busy schedules and frequently deserve overtime pay. Companies like Greystar Real Estate Partners, Riverstone Residential Group, and Fairfield Residential Company employ property managers to service the needs of residents of large apartment complexes. Many Residential Property Managers work a full-time schedule, and are also required to perform repairs and attend to resident issues during their down time. The large amounts of overtime worked in this industry creates a perfect storm for employers to violate the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Salary or Hourly?
Residential Property Managers generally should be classified as non-exempt employees and paid an hourly rate for all hours worked, including work performed after-hours and/or while on-call. Given the unpredictable schedules Residential Property Managers work, it is tempting for the employer to simply pay them a fixed salary for all hours, without overtime pay. This is only legal if the employee is genuinely performing management duties, such as hiring and firing and/or high-level management of the employer’s business. Residential Property Managers who perform significant amounts of manual labor, and/or routine or repetitive office work, should receive overtime pay. A fixed salary, or fixed bonus payments made without regard to hours worked, does not suffice.
Hours Worked Off the Clock
Residential Property Managers often work without direct supervision, which leads to their employers turning a blind eye when they work hours outside their scheduled shifts. Employees should report all time in which they are called in to perform work or address resident issues. If your employer does not provide a way for you to report all of your time, or has told you that certain time should not be reported, you should contact the Wage Authority Group immediately!
Paid for Time On Call?
In the course of consulting with hundreds of Residential Property Managers, a common question posed to the Wage Authority Group has been whether an employee should be paid for the entirety of periods in which they are assigned to be “on call.” In some cases, employers must pay for on-call time, even if the employee performs no actual work. On-call time must be paid where the employee is required to remain on call on the employer’s premises or so close thereto that he or she cannot use the time effectively for his or her own purposes.
Live-in Employees
Some Residential Property Managers live in units at their employers’ properties, free of charge. In such cases, the employer may treat the employee’s lodging as compensation and pay the employee an hourly rate less than $7.25 per hour, so long as the reasonable value of the lodging makes up the difference. However, in calculating the employee’s overtime rate, the employer in such instances must multiply 1.5 times both the hourly rate the employee receives, and the value of the lodging provided by the employer. Employers frequently violate this requirement by paying live-in employees for overtime at 1.5 multiplied only by their hourly rate.
If you work as a Residential Property Manager and feel your pay is being shorted, you are not alone. Call the Wage Authority Group today and became one of the many employees in this industry who are fighting back against wage abuse.