Hourly vs. Salary

[Starry436]

I'm currently an hourly employee at my company where I've been for a few years now right out of college. I have a Bachelors degree in accounting. I'd say I maybe work 5-8 hours of OT a year right now in my current position but it's usually by my own doing, not a requirement. Sometimes I stay through lunch and will pick up that hour as OT or use it to make up for wanting to leave an hour early. One time when I ran out of vacation days and needed to be off for an extended family members funeral I asked to take a leave without pay day. I guess you can't do that with salary.

With the new year, I'm considering asking to be salary. In this company, if you're hourly using the time clock you are viewed as less than. Sounds dumb but it's true. Salary is viewed as a more respected position here, as least from what I've seen. I've almost left this company for other positions and those were all going to be salary but with OT pay and a little more pay but have been persuaded to stay by my boss. My current company would not offer OT pay on salary. My work right now is definitely doable within 40 hours.. Heck even like 25 hours honestly. But I still have to be there 8 hours, 5 days a week. And I often check my work email from home but not because I have to.

I just don't want to turn salary and all of a sudden begin to get treated differently in a negative way. I'm sure you're wondering why would that happen, and I could go on and on about why I would think this way... But I'm just curious as to everyone's thoughts on hourly vs. salary and what your experiences have been like and pros and cons. I just want details before I ask and make a decision to switch.

[Gailete]

I've done both and I did not like being on salary. You get the OT without being reimbursed. I hated the job besides so that was probably part of it. I don't even think I got a raise.

My concern is you asking to be on salary for a job that they don't consider to be a salaried type job. You might want to start your approach by asking your boss if there is reason it is not a salaried position. Most likely because of what you said, that you could probably do it in 25H/week. They are most likely aware of that and hourly employees you can cut them in their hours much more easily than salaried employees.

[greenskeeper]

being salaried blows.

I'll never do it again for anything less than $50/hr equivalent.

[Starry436]

It's a long story but when I was leaving the company for another job, they created a "higher" titled position for me to be in so I would stay. From my understanding, it was just never thought of to turn it into a salary role though it could be. It's a small business, they make their own rules on the fly over night. Some weeks I find it hard to get my 40 hours because I'll be caught up or bored and just take longer lunches and leaving a few mins early in the evenings and not make that time up completely so I'm losing money on doing this since I'm hourly.

But, on the flip side.. When I stay through lunch or stay later in the evenings, it's nice knowing I'm getting a little bit of OT pay. But then the next week I'll be a little short on my hours so it's like the extra pay is a wash. I've always been an hourly employee in my jobs so far so I don't really know what the salary side is like. But until this job I've also never been allowed OT pay, but like I mentioned before I get maybe max 8 hours per year.

[snafu]

What were the results of your last performance review[glowing/adequate/needs supervision] When is your next performance review scheduled? What is the high/low salary [hourly or annually] for similar work by staff in other organizations with your education, experience, and level of responsibility?

What did boss offer to persuade you to stay? Higher hourly rate? More flexibility in hours? Work from home? or? Do salaried staff get more benefits like employer contribution to a retirement plan, free life insurance coverage, paid holiday time or higher pay rate? More responsibility? Paid medical leave? Paid for statutory holidays?

If you ask to change your status from hourly rated to salaried, what benefit will you offer? Generally employers look at change that will benefit their organization or work flow.

If you think changing status will have a negative impact at that work site, I suggest saving yourself drama by seeking, a job you'd like better at another organization.

[ndwilli6]

Salary vs. Hourly

I have been salary and hourly.

Pros of being salaried:
1. Majority of time you're paid regardless of making it into the office. Guaranteed similar/steady pay check!
2. Clocking in? Absolutely not.
3. Even if you manage to work 35 hours for 40 hour work week you're paid!

Cons
1. No OT. Unfortunately many of us work above & beyond the normalcy of 40 hours.

Pro of being hourly:
1. You're paid time-and-a-half beyond 40 hours!

Cons of being hourly.
1. Gotta work to get paid!
2. More than likely you're clocking in.


I left my salary position before for an hourly position. I was working 50+ hours...until company decided limited OT of 5 hours per week. Long story short, I started earning less for more work. I went back to salary...lol

[rennigade]

I loved when I saw an hourly employee. I would rack up OT. One year I made an extra $25,000 in OT alone...those were the good ol days at Sprint before the massive layoffs country wide. The waste that company allowed was glorious and sickening.

Im currently salaried but an allowed OT anything beyond 40 hours with managers approval. I never work more than 40 hours so I never get OT...theres just not enough work.

I feel for the poor suckers who are salaried and work 50+ hour weeks. My wife is salaried but anything over 8 hour days she gets credit time...not overtime pay.

[Thrif-t]

I work part time and when I hired in I was hourly. Now I'm salary. I like that better because I get paid for the holidays the company offers, when I was hourly if I didn't work I didn't get paid. My job isn't really busy enough to have OT anyway so it benefits me more to be salary. Plus as a salary worker I get vacation, not so with hourly pay. I could be in the 401k either way.

The negative of salary is they think they can get me to come in and work on my days off, FOR THE SAME $$, no increase! What am I stupid, no they are! I finally told them to knock it off, I wasn't working full time, if they needed someone full time, do what you gotta do, it was business and I wouldn't take it personally. That shut them up and I don't get bugged anymore.

I handle as much as the full timers for 1/2 the pay and no benefits, so they are making out. But so am I as I can work from home and have a flexible schedule, so we're even.

It sounds like if you don't have a lot of work and can take long lunches and leave early, it would be more advantageous for you to be salary than hourly if they'll let you.

[disneysteve]

I have kind of a hybrid position. It's hourly but not exactly because if I get stuck there late, I don't get paid any extra. So I'm paid hourly but by the shift no matter how long the shift actually ends up lasting.

So if I'm scheduled to work 5-9, I get a set amount that is based on an hourly rate for those 4 hours. But if we don't actually finish up and leave until 9:45, I still only get paid for 4 hours.

However, if I pick up a shift in addition to my contracted 36 hours/week, I do get a higher per diem hourly rate for that shift.

[Starry436]

What about if you need to come in late or leave early for weather on salary, would you be expected to make up that time or use vacation time to cover it? On hourly, I'd have to make it up, use vacation time or not get paid. These are the differences I'm unsure of what they can legally enforce.

I really don't see needing to work OT. It's by choice now but not necessary. My boss is salary and is there on evenings and weekends but it's because she doesn't like to be bored at home, and that isn't me.

As far as benefits, I don't think anything will change here but I'd need to clarify and be sure that I'd still receive a yearly review and raise, hopefully.

I think most of the jobs in my field in corporate are probably salary, most were that I interviewed for. This position is just following the trend of the previous person in it but I've taken on very different duties than that person and have a degree that they also didn't have. So I feel justified in asking for the change because of this and other reasons. Like I said, hourlys at this company are just treated like gum on a shoe. Not that I think that will change for me but it definitely hits your ego feeling like you and your accomplishments mean so little.

[Gailete]

definitely hits your ego feeling like you and your accomplishments mean so little.

The only time I was on salary I felt like gum on a shoe and not at all anything special. LOL. Boy did I hate that job. I took it because the HR woman literally begged me to take the job and promised me the extra training I needed to do it well. Well the HR lady was gone in a month or so and the new person was horrible to work for. No training was ever given, but boy if I made a mistake so help me. At one point she lectured me non-stop for 1 3/4 hours and when she finally stopped for breath, I handed her my letter of resignation and then she complained that I didn't tell her sooner so she wouldn't have had to yak at me for so long. And then when she read the letter, she complained that I had said my last day would be a Friday, and then she complained that Friday wasn't a full 2 weeks, All I could think of was what would have been the point to come in for a Monday only? I couldn't stand that woman.

Just saying salary or not most employees at most jobs don't know who all is salary.

[Smallsteps]

The Pros and Cons of salary seem straight forward but I have found it all depends on the business or manager
A company I worked for felt they owned you on salary so if they said jump your only option was to say how high.
Some companies are better then others but if they feel you are already paid they often feel no boundaries.. emails, phone calls, dropping everything to go in if they need you. Often the attitude can change with the management with one manager it was cake leave early take long lunches etc after transition to NEW manager it was stay extra all the time some had to fit lunch in 20 minutes and were expected to do so much many salaried people complained if you did the math they were making less per hour then their hourly staff.

[bjl584]

The Pros and Cons of salary seem straight forward but I have found it all depends on the business or manager
A company I worked for felt they owned you on salary so if they said jump your only option was to say how high.
Some companies are better then others but if they feel you are already paid they often feel no boundaries.. emails, phone calls, dropping everything to go in if they need you. Often the attitude can change with the management with one manager it was cake leave early take long lunches etc after transition to NEW manager it was stay extra all the time some had to fit lunch in 20 minutes and were expected to do so much many salaried people complained if you did the math they were making less per hour then their hourly staff.

I agree. It depends on the job/company. I am salaried, and the company that I work for is fairly flexible. There aren't too many people here burning the midnight oil. Mostly, it's a standard work day with weekends off. I was hourly when I first started, but have since been promoted. I don't miss punching the clock at all. There isn't much OT here anyway, so it's not something that I miss.

[Starry436]

The only time I was on salary I felt like gum on a shoe and not at all anything special. LOL. Boy did I hate that job. I took it because the HR woman literally begged me to take the job and promised me the extra training I needed to do it well. Well the HR lady was gone in a month or so and the new person was horrible to work for. No training was ever given, but boy if I made a mistake so help me. At one point she lectured me non-stop for 1 3/4 hours and when she finally stopped for breath, I handed her my letter of resignation and then she complained that I didn't tell her sooner so she wouldn't have had to yak at me for so long. And then when she read the letter, she complained that I had said my last day would be a Friday, and then she complained that Friday wasn't a full 2 weeks, All I could think of was what would have been the point to come in for a Monday only? I couldn't stand that woman.

Just saying salary or not most employees at most jobs don't know who all is salary.

Well that definitely is an awful experience of being salary. I mean if the company doesn't have you sign anything saying that you are expected to work when called upon, can they really do anything about it if you don't answer emails after you've left for the day or expect you to not take a lunch? I don't see this happening at my company under current management, but things do change a lot here.

I've never been salary but I suppose if it ends up being that bad then I could then evaluate my choice to stay with the company. My hopes are, if I do stay here for a few more years that my pay would increase along with responsibility and that I wouldn't feel overworked and underpaid for my hours I put in. But right now, most of those on salary are working less than 40 hours. They come in later than me, take 2 hour lunches and then leave at 5:00 with me. So I worked my 8 and they're working their 5.5 hrs if that. The weight across employees here is so unfair. If you're a golden egg, you'll be free to do as you please. If not, every minute will be micromanaged.

My boss says I have growth potential here but I don't see it happening. I think secretly she's envious of me for some reason. Idk why. I do everything she asks and then some but she has certain demeanors that depict jealousy or power control. Given this, I'll probably stick it out until I get some more debt paid off and begin my search for an actual career.

If I could get decent OT hours I wouldn't consider salary, but I feel like if get paid more on salary at this point just because my workload is so light that I have trouble getting to my 40 hours.. So I miss 20-30 mins here or there if I take longer lunches and don't make it up.

[TexasHusker]

Don’t take being hourly personal. Your employer is likely following federal employment guidelines. Federal employment law is very specific as to what types of jobs are to be hourly, and what types are to be salary.

Salaried workers must have a significant portion of their job description as supervisory or managerial. That is the law.

Your employer can’t reclassify you as salary unless your job description has changed.