Can Your Employer Cut Your Pay or Hours? Your Rights

When an Employer Can Lower Pay or Hours

Without a contract that says otherwise, an employer can generally change your pay rate or schedule for future work, as long as it tells you before the change applies. If you keep working after learning of the new rate, the change usually stands. The cut still has to leave you at or above the minimum wage required by the Department of Labor and 29 U.S.C. 206, and overtime must still be paid at the right rate under the overtime rules for eligible employees. Our article on at-will employment explains why a lawful reason is not always required.

Cuts That Are Usually Unlawful

• Cutting pay for work already done

  An employer generally cannot lower the rate for hours you already worked. Unpaid or short-paid wages for past work can be recovered.

• Pay below the legal minimum

  A reduced wage, tip arrangement or salary that falls under the federal or state minimum, or that wipes out overtime owed, is not allowed.

• A cut that breaks a contract

  If you have a written employment agreement, offer letter with a guaranteed rate, or union contract, the employer usually must follow it or follow its change process.

• Retaliation

  Reducing hours or pay soon after you complained about discrimination, asked for leave or reported a safety problem can be retaliation.

• Discrimination

  A cut that targets you because of race, sex, age, disability, religion, pregnancy or another protected trait is unlawful even if others have lost hours too.

Reduced Hours as Retaliation or Discrimination

Sudden schedule changes are one of the most common ways employers punish workers without firing them. The EEOC explains on its retaliation page that unlawful retaliation includes any action that would discourage a reasonable person from complaining, not only termination. A pattern such as full schedules until a complaint and then a few shifts afterward is worth documenting. Read our guide to workplace retaliation for how these claims are proved.

When a Pay Cut Forces You Out

A large cut in pay or hours can sometimes amount to a forced resignation. If conditions became so bad that a reasonable person would feel compelled to quit, the law may treat it as a firing. See what constructive dismissal is and how to prove it before you resign, because quitting can affect your options.

What to Do After a Pay or Hours Cut

• Get it in writing

  Ask for the new rate or schedule, the effective date and the reason in an email or letter, and keep any announcement you received.

• Save the records

  Keep pay stubs, schedules, timesheets and your offer letter so you can compare the old and new terms and calculate the difference.

• Note the timing

  Write down what you did before the change, such as a complaint, a leave request or an injury report, and how soon the cut followed.

• Check your pay is correct

  Confirm that you were paid for all hours worked at the new rate. If not, see how to <a href="/blogs/how-to-recover-unpaid-wages-from-your-employer" class="text-primary underline">recover unpaid wages</a>.

• Mind the deadlines

  Claims have short filing windows, so read our <a href="/blogs/how-long-to-file-employment-discrimination-claim-deadlines" class="text-primary underline">filing deadlines guide</a> and consult a lawyer early.

Frequently Asked Questions