Salaried employees work hard for their paychecks. They count on the amount to remain consistent so that they can pay their bills and get things taken care of. When salaried employees find out that their pay is being docked, they might question whether this is legal or not.
There are several things to consider when trying to determine the legality. One is whether or not employers can just dock your pay for no reason at all. Instead, they can only dock your pay for a reason that is considered permissible under the law.
Missing work is one of the permissible reasons why your pay might be docked. If you miss one or more days because you had to take personal time off, a pay dock might occur. There are some instances in which this might occur if you have to miss work for a sick day. Of course, if you have paid time off banked for these instances, your pay should remain consistent.
Disciplinary actions, such as suspensions, can also result in pay losses. Taking time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act or due to another reason, e.g., military service or jury duty, can also lead to the employer docking your pay. It is also possible to have a pay dock because of violations of major safety rules.
If you think that your pay has been docked illegally, you should take action to find out if this is the case. If it is, you can take legal action against your employer to recover the money that you are due.
Source: FindLaw, “Pay Docking for Salaried Employees,” accessed Sep. 29, 2017