Working part time 8 hours a day, $9.74/hour, no benefits. Is this legal?

[thereismore]

For all legally equipped DUers out there:

My wife's contract says "part time, 9 months", no benefits, 40 hours a week. She is not unionized.
I think the words "part time" enabled them to pay her only $9.74/hour. A full time position would pay more.

1) Is this legal?
2) Do they owe her a full-time salary?
3) Do they owe her benefits?
4) Should I sue?

Thank you.

[skooooo]

1. 40 hours a week is not part time nt

[Coyote_Bandit]

2. Contact

the labor board in your state. They can advise you and intervene on your behalf - without incurring the cost of an attorney.

[thereismore]

5. Thank you Coyote, I will do that. nt

[RaleighNCDUer]

3. That describes a temp job, not a P/T job.

40 hrs a week is full time. Even if it only lasts 9 mos.

They can withhold benefits if it is classified as a temp job, but they should be paying a F/T wage.

[TreasonousBastard]

4. That may not be all it says, and p/t has nothing...

to do with the pay rate-- they can pay any hourly rate they can get away with, as long as it's at least the minimum. I suspect that the contract says something like "up to" 40 hours so they won't have to pay overtime.

Most likely, they don't owe her anything more than the hourly rate they promised. If she is part-time or temp, she has rights but benefits aren't necessarily among them. Each state does have different rules, though.

FWIW, I have two part-time jobs that pay more, but have no bennies at all, not even paid vacation. And they are both gummint jobs.

[Warpy]

6. Other than they'll have to pay her overtime for anything over

40 hours a week, that sounds like a typical temp job contract to me. Usually, though, the temp jobs pay more than staff jobs because temps don't get benefits at all.

She might want to check into that in the future. For the time being, she's contracted into that job for the next few months and she's stuck.