Can Lady Gaga deny me overtime pay?

Apparently, Ms. Gaga attempted to deny her assistant overtime pay. Read an article here. Her assistant, who was required to run errands, fix her hair and makeup, and answer phone calls and emails, was allegedly “on call 24 hours per day.” The assistant claimed that she was non-exempt from overtime pay and should have been paid for her hours over 40 per week. The lawsuit was recently settled instead of going to trial, which is probably best for everyone involved.

In some instances, non-exempt employees who are on call are entitled to pay for this time. Generally speaking, it depends on how much the employee actually has to do. If he or she is not allowed to go places and do things; has to be able to report to work within a certain amount of time; takes frequent phone calls and answers emails; or other restrictions, the on call time may be compensable. However, if the employee’s time is generally his or her own, the time probably is not compensable.

In the case of Lady Gaga’s assistant, it seems she was occasionally required to go so far as to sleep in the singer’s bed so that she was not too far from her boss should she need something in the middle of the night. This is a good example of on call time that is probably compensable!

Do you think you’re owed overtime pay? Read more about wage and hour law on our website.