I started working with a new company back in January. The plan according to them was for me to start off at a lower hourly rate, learn how the company works and runs, and then when I was ready I was going to be promoted to essentially a business rep position. I've only been told, since then and now, that this promotion was a salaried position.
This company is a smaller one, definitely not big box retail that I'm coming from, so we have one “HR” guy, but it's clear that he doesn't know what he's doing. When I discussed everything with him after I was told that I was going to start the position, I was told that I was going to be paid X/hr at 40 hours a week. This was weird to me at the time since I was expecting a salaried position to be and actual salary, not a constant hourly rate. I was also expecting some paperwork, maybe a contract to sign, but nothing. I was just told that my pay was going to change and that's it.
After 5 weeks now I've been talking to some of the other “salaried” employees at my company, and everyone else is paid in the same way, but they're all being paid at 50 hours a week. I have work 53+ hours 3 out of the last 5 weeks, and around 48 hours the other two.
Are we being taken advantage of in some way? Are they getting around some kind of tax for having us at an hourly wage? I'm going to talk to my HR this week to tell them that I need to be on a 50 paid schedule, but I'd like to have some solid information on what they're doing before I do that.