OKLAHOMA WORKERS ARE OWED $2.2 BILLION IN UNPAID OVERTIME

As a result, American workers are facing underpayment, overwork, and stress. One of the reasons for this is the decrease in overtime pay.

A new study by the employment law firm Bisnar Chase has revealed that the average Oklahoma employee in the private sector worked approximately 2.8 hours of unpaid overtime per week over 2022 (the national average was 2.1 hours of unpaid overtime). When this figure is applied to the number of exempt workers in The Sooner State (and based on the median wage), and then annualized, it transpires that Oklahoma workers are collectively owed $2,266,999,693 in backpay.

Overtime pay may not be a familiar term to many younger generations, but in the past, it was a staple for middle-class workers. Nowadays, a significant portion of employees work over 40 hours a week without receiving any overtime compensation. Despite laws that protect the right to overtime pay, those earning above $35k per year are often misclassified into exempt positions that do not qualify for overtime. This creates a large pool of free labor for employers to exploit, leading to increased profits, declining real wages, and a widening income gap.

When broken down by state, it is Marylanders who are working the most for free. The average worker in The Old Line state estimates that they worked 3.5 hours in unpaid overtime per week in 2022. This means they are collectively owed $4.4 billion by their employers. In contrast, workers in South Dakota ‘only worked’ 0.3 hours in overtime, resulting in a collective overtime debt of $79 million.