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McDonald's Wage Theft? Timesheet Fraud Alleged

By Brett Snider, Esq. | Last updated on

You've heard of employees tampering with their timesheets, but a New York McDonald's employee claims his employer was fraudulently altering his time cards in order to cut his pay.

Frustrated ex-employee Jeff Schuyler claims his bosses at the Syracuse-area McDonald's modified his timesheets in order to avoid paying him overtime, reports The Huffington Post. His lawsuit seeks class-action status.

As wage theft continues across the country, employers should take a careful look at the laws relating to time and wage requirements.

McDonald's Employees Not Given Fair Shake?

One part of Schuyler's lawsuit against McDonald's Corp. and the Syracuse franchisee is that he and other employees were not paid for work done during their 30-minute lunch break, reports HuffPo.

After repeatedly complaining to management about the time-shaving and compensation issues, Schuyler was allegedly fired by the franchise owner, according to The Post-Standard.

Under the protections of Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), employers are required by federal law to track and record time for non-exempt (non-salaried) employees.

Employers can violate this act by:

New York Requires Lunch Breaks

Depending on the state, a business owner may be required by law to give her employees lunch breaks if they work long shifts.

Almost half of states require some sort of 30-minute lunch break. This includes New York, which would require McDonald's to give him a half-hour mealtime for "shifts of more than six hours that extend over the noon day meal period," according to the United States Department of Labor.

As Schuyler's former employer may be found liable under federal and state law for alleged wage theft, and the franchise owner is probably not "lovin' it."

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