Comp time is time that makes up for extra hours that you already worked. Some businesses will do this so that they don’t have to pay time and a half for an employee to work overtime.
For example, say that you’re working late on a Friday when you’ve already put in 40 hours for the week. But there’s still more to be done before the end of that week, so your boss asks you to stay two hours late on Friday.
Instead of paying you time and a half for those two hours, they simply tell you to come in two hours later on Monday. They’re just moving your hours from one week to the other. Are they allowed to do this?
You still deserve time and a half
It is legal to do this in Kentucky, though it does need to be in writing. Employers are allowed to have employees take comp time instead of additional pay. This gives them some extra flexibility with scheduling.
However, you still do deserve time and a half, even if you’re being given paid comp time instead of additional financial compensation. So your employer giving you two extra hours off on Monday, in that example, is not enough. They would actually need to give you three hours off to make up for the two hours of overtime that you already worked. This way, you still get proper compensation for going over the number of hours you would normally work in a week.
Unfortunately, not all employers understand how this process works and they may violate your rights. If this happens, you need to know what legal steps you can take.
