Encompass Health Unpaid Wages Lawsuit: Overtime Miscalculation?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are investigating Encompass Health Corporation for potential labor law violations.

Specifically, they believe the company, which operates inpatient rehabilitation facilities throughout the U.S., may be underpaying hourly employees for their overtime hours by failing to include shift differentials, extra shift bonuses and other types of nondiscretionary pay in rate calculations. They’re also looking into whether Encompass has failed to pay employees for time spent working through meal breaks.

A lawsuit may be able to change how much Encompass Health pays CNAs, RNs and other hourly positions.

Encompass Health Pay: How Might Overtime Be Miscalculated?

Under federal labor law, overtime is typically calculated based on a 40-hour workweek, meaning covered employees must be paid overtime for all hours worked in excess of 40 per week. However, there is an exception for hospitals and residential care facilities that, by agreement, may instead pay overtime for all hours worked in excess of eight in a day and 80 in each 14-day period.

Regardless of your Encompass Health pay schedule, your overtime rate must be at least one and a half times your regular pay rate.

As explained by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), an employee’s regular pay rate is not just their base hourly rate but includes any additional wages they’ve earned during the workweek, with limited exceptions:

The regular rate is the average hourly rate calculated by dividing the total pay for employment (except the statutory exclusions) in any workweek by the total number of hours actually worked.”

According to a DOL fact sheet, a “common error” among healthcare employers when calculating employees’ overtime rates is to leave out shift differentials, extra shift bonuses and other types of nondiscretionary pay from workers’ regular pay rates.

Nondiscretionary bonuses, which employees typically know about beforehand and expect, must be included in workers’ regular pay rates, and leaving them out could result in employees being paid less than they’re legally owed for overtime hours.

Are Workers Owed Unpaid Wages for Meal Breaks?

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), bona fide meal breaks of at least 30 minutes do not count as hours worked and are unpaid. However, employees must be completely relieved of all duties during the meal period. If an employee works through part or all of their meal break, they must be paid for the break.

For instance, a lawsuit filed against a healthcare company claimed employees had 30-minute meal breaks automatically deducted from their hours regardless of whether they actually took uninterrupted breaks. The plaintiff, a registered nurse, said meal breaks were frequently “late, short, interrupted, or missed entirely” because the company failed to provide enough coverage for nurses to take full breaks. According to the lawsuit, employees often worked several hours per week for which they were not paid as a result of the company’s meal break practices.

How Could an Encompass Health Pay Rate Lawsuit Help?

A lawsuit against Encompass Health could help current and former hourly employees get back money for any unpaid wages they may be owed. It could also force the company to change its pay practices with regard to overtime and meal breaks.

Think You’re Owed Unpaid Wages? Take Action

After you get in touch, an attorney or legal representative may reach out to you directly to ask you some questions and explain how you may be able to help start a lawsuit against Encompass Health. It doesn’t cost anything to fill out the form or speak with someone, and you’re not obligated to take legal action if you decide you don’t want to.

Before commenting, please review our comment policy.