Filing a Wage and Hour Claim - Oregon
Like federal law, Oregon state law requires employers to pay employees one and one-half times the employee’s regular rate of pay for all hours over 40 worked in any seven-day work week. Overtime pay is mandatory in Oregon and may not be replaced with comp time (except for government employees), even if the employer and the employee come to an agreement.
Oregon’s overtime provisions do not apply to anyone not covered by the state minimum wage requirement (see below). The state overtime requirements also do not apply to anyone to whom the federal overtime requirements do not apply. As a result, the following employees not exempt from the state minimum wage law are exempt from the state’s overtime requirement:
- Employees working as salespersons, part persons, and mechanics in automotive or farm machinery dealerships
- Most truck drivers or drivers’ helpers
- Seamen
- Some agricultural workers
- Motion picture theater workers
Oregon’s minimum wage rates are expected to rise on July 1, 2025, due to increasing inflation. The state uses a tiered system with three minimum wage categories based on geographic regions: Standard, Portland metro, and Non-urban. The applicable minimum wage is determined by where workers spend at least half of their weekly work hours.
Standard Minimum Wage: Currently $14.70, this rate covers areas including Benton, Clatsop, Columbia, Deschutes, Hood River, Jackson, Josephine, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Polk, Tillamook, Wasco, Yamhill, and parts of Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties outside the urban growth boundary. It will remain unchanged until June 30, 2025, but is expected to increase on July 1, 2025, since it is adjusted annually for inflation based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the U.S. City Average. The CPI-U has increased by 0.2 percent each month from July to October 2024. Oregon’s two other minimum wage rates are tethered to the Standard minimum wage.
Portland Metro Area: Currently $15.95, this rate covers parts of Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties within the urban growth boundary. It is set at $1.25 above the Standard minimum wage and will likely increase on July 1, 2025.
Non-urban Minimum Wage: Currently $13.70, this rate covers the counties of Baker, Coos, Crook, Curry, Douglas, Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Jefferson, Klamath, Lake, Malheur, Morrow, Sherman, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa, and Wheeler. This rate is set at $1 less than the Standard minimum wage and will also likely increase on July 1, 2025.
Employers should review their employees’ salaries and wages to ensure all non-exempt employees are earning at least the minimum wage based on where they work. The Oregon Bureau of Labor & Industries (BOLI) will calculate an adjustment of the standard minimum wage rate by April 30 of each year and maintains a list of applicable rates. BOLI provides an interactive map to help identify the applicable wage category for each geographic area.
Yes. For every work period of six to eight hours, employees are entitled to a 30-minute meal period. If an employer cannot provide such a 30-minute meal period because of the nature or circumstances of the work, (s)he must permit employees to eat while working and pay employees for that time. An employer may also provide a shorter meal period (minimum of 20 minutes) if (s)he can show that there is an industry practice of a shorter paid meal period. In addition and separate and apart from the 30-minute meal period, each employee is entitled to a ten-minute break for every four hours worked; unlike the 30-minute period, this cannot be deducted from wages.
If your employer owes you wages, you may file a wage claim with the Wage and Hour Division of Oregon’s Bureau of Labor and Industries. The process is explained in depth here.The Division has the authority to investigate, attempt to settle disputes, sue employers, and make complaints in criminal court.
Do not delay in contacting the Wage and Hour Division of the Bureau of Labor and Industries to file a claim. There are strict time limits in which charges of wage-and-hour violations must be filed. There is a general statute of limitations of six years for wage cases, but a statute of limitations of two years for overtime cases. The Division can only help you if you file a claim within these time periods. However, as you might have other legal claims with shorter deadlines, do not wait to file your claim until your time limit is close to expiring. You may wish to consult with an attorney prior to filing your claim, if possible. Yet if you are unable to find an attorney who will assist you, it is not necessary to have an attorney to file your claim with the district and federal administrative agencies.
Instead of filing a wage claim with the Wage and Hour Division, you may also file a lawsuit in court. In court, you may recover $200 or the wages you are owed, whichever is greater. In addition, the court can require your employer to pay your attorneys’ fees and litigation costs. The statute of limitations for wage cases is six years, except for overtime claims, in which case the statute of limitations is two years long.
If an employee’s employment ceases and their employer willfully fails to pay the employee’s wages or compensation, the court may award the plaintiff-employee wages or compensation at their normal hourly rate for eight hours a day from the time employment ceases up until the action has commenced as a failure for nonpayment. This compensation cannot continue for more than 30 days. However, the penalty may not exceed 100 percent of the employee’s unpaid wages of compensation.
