Our Colorado Overtime Attorneys Can Help You Recover Unpaid Overtime

Workers are entitled to the wages they earn, and Colorado laws and regulates protect those rights.

Wage theft occurs when an employee is not paid what they are owed. Some common examples are non-payment of wages, failure to pay for overtime, unlawful deductions from paychecks, and tipped job abuse. Because there are so many ways that workers are unjustly deprived of their compensation, wage theft can be present in all sectors of work. That said, some industries and occupations show up repeatedly with unpaid overtime and other wage & hour issues, such as restaurant employees. Some of these industries have special laws applying to their workers, which make calculating wages and overtime more complex, such as for certain types of nurses and healthcare staff; but in other industries, workers find that they are frequently forced to work off the clock or experience improper deductions from their pay. If you are hit with a wage & hour violation in any industry, the overtime lawyers at the employment law office of Coffman Legal in Denver, Colorado can help.

If your employer is not paying you, withholds your paycheck, or isn’t otherwise fully paying you, contact our Denver Colorado wage and hour attorneys for a FREE consultation.

Under Colorado State Regulation (7 CCR 1103-1 (2022), “COMPS”), all private sector work must:

• Pay employees at a minimum wage of $12.56 per hour (as of 2022). The local government in Denver, Colorado, enacted a high minimum wage, so the minimum wage in Denver is $15.87.
• Overtime Pay applies when an employer works either (a) beyond 40 hours per week; (b) beyond 12 hours per day; or (c) any 12 consecutive hours, whichever would result in the higher payment of wages. Overtime work must be compensated at 1.5x the employee’s regular rate of pay. Generally, “comp time” is disallowed in Colorado.
• Meal Periods: For shifts over 5 hours, employees are entitled to an uninterrupted, duty free 30-minute meal period. If the employees are actually and completely relieved of all duties and allowed to pursue personal activities, then that 30-minute Meal Period does not need to be paid. However, if the employee is not completely relieved for the full 30 minutes (continuous), then the employee must be paid for it.
• If the work makes having an uninterrupted meal period impractical, then the employer must all an employee to consume an on-duty meal while performing duties, and that time must be compensated.
• For each 4 hours of work (continuous), the employers must authorize and permit a compensated 10-minute rest period. Rest periods must not include work. If an employee is not authorized and permitted any required rest period time, then extra work has been performed, requiring additional pay for that time.
• Employers must keep records for each employee with the information detailed in R. 7.1 (Employer Record-Keeping and Posting Requirements), must issue employees itemized earnings statements for each pay period worked, and must retain records of that information for at least 3 years, plus the duration of any wage claim pertaining to the employee.

These regulations were enacted by the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. For questions about these laws, contact our experienced Denver unpaid wages lawyers.

Colorado Wage Act (“CWA”)

The Colorado Wage Act, C.R.S. § 8-4-101, et seq., offers other protections to employees in Colorado:

• Employers must pay their employers their wages no later than ten days following the end of each pay period unless the employer and employee have mutually agreed otherwise.
• The regular pay periods must be no longer than thirty days or one month, whichever is longer.
• Employers must post notice specifying the regular paydays and the time and place of payment.
• In the event of any strike, the unpaid wages or compensation earned by such striking employee shall become due and payable on the employer’s next regular payday, and the payment or settlement shall include all amounts due such striking employee without abatement or reduction. The employer shall return to each striking employee, upon request, any deposit or money or other guaranty required by the employer from the employee for the faithful performance of the duties of his or her employment.
• In the event of a strike, every employee who is discharged shall be paid at the place of discharge, and every employee who quits or resigns shall be paid at the office or agency of the employer in the county or city and county where such employee has been performing the labor or service for the employer. All payments of money or compensation shall be made in the manner provided by law.
• When employment is terminated by the employer, the wages or compensation are due and payable immediately.
• When an employee quits or resigns, the employer must pay all wages owed to the employee by the next regular payday.
• An employer may pay different rates for different work only if the employer and the employee agree to each rate before the work is performed. An employer may not unilaterally change an employee’s payrate retroactively for unsatisfactory.
• An employer must retain pay records for at least three years after the wages or compensation were due, and for the duration of any pending wage claim related to an employee.

Fight Wage & Hour Violations in Colorado

Don’t fall prey to wage & hour violations, it pays to know your rights and be alert to questionable conduct on the part of your employer. If you believe that your employer is not paying you correctly regarding wages or overtime, call Coffman Legal at 720-784-7717 for a free consultation with our dedicated and effective Denver Colorado unpaid wages and unpaid overtime lawyers.