e-Help Report: Getting Paid Below Minimum Wage

Just this past July the minimum wage went up to $7.25 per hour. Most of us take it for granted we're getting paid at least that; hopefully much more. But one woman claims that what her job is paying her is nowhere near that. Is it legal?

One woman wanted to know if it is legal for a non-profit organization to pay people $3.15 an hour. That's less than the minimum wage.

We spoke to Terri Gerstein, a commissioner with the New York State Department of Labor. Terri explained that almost all employees in the state of New York are covered by the minimum wage law.

"The federal minimum wage", she said, "just went up to $7.25 an hour. New York's minimum wage, accordingly, tracks the federal in this case and goes up to $7.25 an hour. New York's minimum wage was $7.15, so this increase is only 10 cents per hour. But in this economy, even though it's a small amount, every little bit helps."

"The minimum wage is to create a floor on the wage that workers can be paid", she explained, "to make sure that, especially in desperate times like these, that employers don't take advantage of people's economic desperation and pay ever lower wages to people who are, as I said, desperate to get a job and be able to pay their bills and take care of their families."

We also learned that there are very few exemptions to the minimum wage. Almost all employees throughout the state and in the country are covered by minimum wage. Under New York State law, however, the definition of employee does NOT include people who are working for a summer camp or conference of related to a religious, educational, or charitable institution for not more than 3 months annually, or as a staff counselor for any children's camp.

So it turns out, if you work for a summer camp that runs under three months, you're not protected by the minimum wage law. If that creates too much of a hardship, you might want to consider finding another job.