I want start by saying I really like my job. I've worked in many fields and this is by far the least stressful environment I've ever been in. I'm also in talks to buy the business down the road so I'm not going to be leaving.
I work in a small custom cabinet shop. 3 total people, my boss, another employee, and myself. We do work for clients that are on both sides of the spectrum. Solid middle class, all the way to multi-million dollar homes. We are also busy beyond belief. We are about 6 months out and have a few jobs lined up for February.
With that being said when I was hired a few years ago my boss told me he doesn't pay overtime. He claims that people work less during regular hours just to work for OT. As mentioned before we are incredibly busy and are starting to fall behind. Like working on projects that had a deadline in November. This has led my boss to ask me to start working OT, and I keep saying I cant. I've talked to the dept. of labor in my state and they said I'm in the right, the law states I must be paid time and a half. This has led my boss to have to hire outside help that costs much more than my OT.