Employee Rights for a Raise in Maryland
Raises and promotions are never guaranteed, nor are they required by state or federal law with few exceptions. However, employees who have experienced discrimination over a raise or who have completed a 90 day training period as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA) and are under the age of 20 may have legal recourse. Employers are only required by law to provide the federal minimum wage or the state minimum wage, whichever is higher, as long as they meet the test for the FLSA covered employer provision.
Other People Are Reading
-
Fair Labor Standards Act
-
The Fair Labor Standards Act requires employers who have a gross annual income of $500,000 or more to pay at least the federal minimum wage, which at the time of publication is $7.25 per hour. Minimum wage recipients are also entitled to time and a half for any hours worked over 40 in any given work week.The FLSA only mandates the minimum wage, and does not require that raises or promotions be given by any employer.
Maryland Employment Laws
-
Maryland's Fair Employment Law Practices protect employees against wage discrimination on the basis of sex, race, age, religion and pregnancy. According to the law, employers may not discriminate for any of the aforementioned reasons, and wages must be based on the individual's performance. If you are employed in Maryland and believe that you have not received a raise in pay because your employer has discriminated against you based on race, age, sex, religion or pregnancy, you may be protected by this law and should seek legal advice.
-
Youth Raises Based on the Completion of Training
-
The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require employers to pay the minimum wage to youth under the age of 20 until they have completed a 90 day training period. Instead, the FLSA requires employers to pay $4.25 per hour until either the 90 day training period is complete or the youth turns 20, whichever comes first. Upon the completion of the training, the employer is required to pay the federal minimum wage or the state minimum wage, whichever is higher. Employers are not allowed to fire youth who have completed training or reached the age of 20 in order to replace them with youth who fall into the training wage category.
Considerations
-
Neither the U.S. Department of Labor nor the state of Maryland provides laws guaranteeing salary or hourly raises or promotions except in the FLSA youth training provision. Employees are only guaranteed a raise if the federal or state minimum wage is increased. If you feel that you have been discriminated against because of race, sex, age or religion you may have cause for legal action, unless the employer can show that the denial of the raise was based on your individual work performance.
-
References
- Photo Credit Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
