What Is Arise Virtual Solutions?

The FLSA represents one of several laws passed during the Great Depression that addressed the economic malaise facing the United States. Considered by historians to be the model labor law for all other labor laws to follow, the FLSA mandates the payment of a minimum wage and overtime wages for workers. It also establishes a minimum age requirement for American employees. 

The current federal minimum wage sits at $7.25, which has remained the same since July 2009. Tipped employees, who earn most of their income through gratuities, receive a federal minimum wage of $2.13 an hour. American employers must pay workers younger than 20 years old a minimum wage of $4.25 per hour for the first 90 probationary days of employment. The 90-day probationary period includes both work days and off days.

Federal overtime statutes require employers to pay 1.5 times an employee’s standard wage for every hour worked over 40 hours a week. Employers have the flexibility to define a workweek, as long as it consists of seven consecutive days. For example, one employer might start a workweek on a Sunday and end it on a Saturday. A competitor might define a workweek as starting on a Thursday and ending the following Wednesday.

Enforcement of the statutes written into the FLSA is the responsibility of the Wage and Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor. Investigators from the Wage and Hour Division gather data on hours, wages, and any other type of employment practice that falls under the jurisdiction of the FLSA.

Employers that intentionally violate a provision of the FLSA face a civil fine as high as $1,000 for each violation. For instance, if an employer paid five employees wages below the federal minimum wage, the employer might receive a fine as high as $5,000. Employers also can face criminal charges if they repeatedly violate any of the statutes written into the FLSA.

One important note: Many states have passed more generous wage and overtime laws than the statutes enacted at the federal level. For example, California has established a minimum wage for workers in the state that more than doubles the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

President Bill Clinton signed the Family Medical Leave Act into law on February 5, 1993. The enactment of the landmark employment law represented recognition by lawmakers of the rapidly changing family dynamic, as an increasing number of women comprised the American workforce. The FMLA ensures that an eligible employee can take up to 12 unpaid weeks off for reasons that include adoption, pregnancy, personal illness, or an illness of a family member. One of the most common reasons why American workers take advantage of the FMLA is for military leave, such as when a state’s National Guard goes on maneuvers.

Moreover, the FMLA allows employees to return to the same jobs they left during unpaid leave. 

The wage and hour violation charges faced by Arise Virtual Solution are not the result of just a couple of years of employee misclassifications. Arise Virtual Solutions face wage and hour violations that go back more than 10 years. The company misclassified customer support and service agents as independent contractors, which denied the workers the right to a minimum wage, overtime pay, and paid sick leave. Lawsuits filed on behalf of the plaintiffs claim that Arise Virtual Solutions should not classify customer service and support agents as independent contractors because Arise has the power to hire and fire its employees. Arise also is responsible for paying their customer service and support agents, which means their employees are not independent contractors.

If you worked as a customer service and support agent for Arise Virtual Solutions, and the company violated the FLSA and FMLA by misclassifying your job definition, you should contact one of the experienced employment lawyers at Morgan and Morgan to receive the compensation that you deserve. One of the most common questions that we receive from clients concerns how an employment attorney provides legal support.

Conduct a Comprehensive Investigation

One of the most important types of legal support provided by a Morgan and Morgan employment attorney concerns conducting an extensive investigation into your case. This involves reviewing the employment records kept by Arise Virtual Solutions, as well as copies of your bank and wage statements. Your lawyer also interviews other employees to determine whether Arise also misclassified their job status.

Morgan and Morgan assigns a properly licensed investigator to work with your lawyer during the investigation.

Explain Your Employment Rights

Many American workers are not aware of the legal protections granted by the FLSA and FMLA, as well as the statutes passed at the state level. During the free case evaluation with an employment attorney from Morgan and Morgan, you can expect to learn more about your employment rights. Your lawyer also keeps you informed about your employment rights throughout your case. Employers are not legally obligated to communicate employee rights verbally, although you might find a section in the employee manual that describes your rights.

File a Formal Complaint

At the federal government level, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) processes employment-related complaints. You also have the right to file a complaint at the state level. For most employment misclassification cases, employees must first file a formal complaint with the appropriate government agency before filing a civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. Working with an employment attorney from Morgan and Morgan ensures you submit an accurate and fully completed complaint form. Just one minor mistake can force the government agency processing your complaint to deny it. 

Negotiate a Settlement

The goal of your employment lawyer is to get you the compensation that you deserve. A government agency such as the EEOC can apply enough pressure via threats of taking legal action to get you adequately compensated. Your employment attorney also can help you receive just compensation by negotiating a settlement. Calculating a reasonable value for compensation considers several factors, starting with the amount of money owed because of unpaid regular and overtime wages. You also might qualify to receive compensation for any fees charged on credit card accounts for late or no payments.

File a Civil Lawsuit

Arise Virtual Solutions now faces several employment misclassification lawsuits primarily because the company refused to address the violations. At Morgan and Morgan, our team of employment attorneys handles every type of case, including discrimination, wrongful termination, and wage violations. Although filing a civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages represents a legal action of last resort, our lawyers do not hesitate to take legal action if legal action is warranted.

The number of years an employment attorney has provided legal support is not as important as the record compiled over the course of those years. Morgan and Morgan, which has represented clients since 1988, has compiled a record of success unmatched by other law firms. Check out our results to see why we are considered one of the best law firms in the United States. 

Another factor to consider concerns how involved your lawyer gets in your case. Some law firms assign attorneys to clients, only to reassign the attorneys after the first meeting. At Morgan and Morgan, the employment attorney handling your case represents you from the day of the free case evaluation to the day when your case gets resolved.

We encourage you to read the positive reviews left by our clients on sites such as Yelp and Google. You also should read the client testimonials posted on our website.

Do not allow Arise Virtual Solutions or any other company to misclassify your job status. Schedule a free case evaluation today with an employment attorney from Morgan and Morgan.