By being part of the Prattville Community Church, you know that your fellow members have certain freedoms and privileges when it comes to employment. However, under the laws governing part time employees in California, you and other members who are part time employees may also have certain responsibilities and privileges that you have yet to learn about. Here are a few ways in which you can do this, and a few advantages of knowing more about employment law in general:
Because Prattville Community Church believes in being organized and welcoming to all potential members, it should come as no surprise that members should learn about their legal rights with regard to employment. As a member of this community, you can expect to find the following basic advantages and protections as a part time employee: in addition to hourly wages, part time workers are also entitled to other benefits, such as the federally-mandated overtime pay, rest and meal breaks, and other similar privileges. Although these are just a few of the obligations that employers have when hiring part time workers, you may still find that you do not know exactly what right you have when you are a part time employee.
While there have not been any recent changes to California part time employee laws, there are a wide variety of state rights and obligations that members should be aware of, including a few that are surprising. For instance, part time employees are entitled to certain rest and meal breaks, as well as overtime pay, and employers have been known to breach their duty by failing to pay these wages on time. Any claims for unpaid wages can be litigated in court if necessary, but only if the worker knows that his or her rights have been violated.
As members of a local church, most employees under the Prattville Community Church probably work close to home. Therefore, you should also know that the California part time employee laws that protect workers apply to local businesses owned by members of the Prattville Community Church as well, so they cannot treat you unfairly simply because you are a member of the local community. If you have a complaint about working conditions at any local business owned by church members, you have the same right to report this to the state government as an employee who has no connection to the church. Moreover, if you are a part time employee at a local business, all of the same rules outlined above apply to you as they would to any other part time employee.
If you are a working parent who attends Prattville Community Church, you may be curious as to how your family situation fits in with employment laws. Some industry experts maintain that, under California law, working parents may qualify for extra pay in some situations. For instance, if an employer violates the rest and meal period laws by failing to provide the necessary breaks, parents may be encouraged to file complaints for up to an hour’s pay per day of missed breaks. When part time employees at organizations such as Prattville Community Church are also working parents, their employers may be even more likely to provide them with overtime and keep their rest and meal breaks in mind.
Of course, part time employment laws exist not only to benefit those working parents in the Prattville Community Church, but also for those who are responsible for caring for elderly parents and grandparents or disabled children. If an employer violates any of the laws regarding rest or meal periods, parents and caregivers have the same right as any other employee to receive compensation for the missed breaks. Working parents are also encouraged to speak out if their employer has blocked them from taking some time off for medical or personal emergencies.
Prattville Community Church members should know that for the past several years, California state law has prohibited employers from asking about criminal histories at the beginning of the application process. Employers are then encouraged to give applicants a second chance if they are qualified for the position and have potential for rehabilitation, although they may ultimately choose to hire a different applicant. Nonetheless, the law currently prohibits employers from asking questions about criminal history until after the position has been offered, so members should keep this law in mind as they apply for different jobs.
Like many laws, misconceptions abound when it comes to part time employment in California. For instance, it is important to note that some employers may misclassify applicants in order to make them exempt from overtime pay, so members of the Prattville Community Church should be sure to verify the terms of their employment before beginning to work. Similarly, members should be on alert for employers who mislabel classified employees as independent contractors, in order to avoid paying their workers the benefits and privileges owed to employees.
This is just one way in which being informed about employment law issues can help you and other members of Prattville Community Church make more informed legal choices. Fortunately, there is additional information available within the California part time employee laws. You are invited to read more of this information, as well as the accompanying specifics about working parents, working elderly individuals, and other circumstances.