An employer tells a salaried employee they cannot claim overtime pay.
Premiumintermediate8 minutes
The Situation
What They Said
“You cannot claim overtime — you are a salaried employee.”
Said by a manager when a salaried employee who regularly works more than the standard full-time hours per week asks about overtime compensation.
The Fallacy
False Equivalence / Misleading Generalisation
This statement falsely equates 'being salaried' with having no overtime rights. While certain categories of employees, such as senior managerial or executive roles, may be exempt from overtime provisions under specific conditions, this does not apply to all salaried employees. The argument exploits the assumption that any salary arrangement overrides statutory rights, which is legally incorrect for the majority of workers.
What the Law Says
Your Legal Foundation
Ley de Contrato de Trabajo 20.744
art. 198 de la Ley de Contrato de Trabajo — Overtime for salaried employees
“The reduction of the maximum legal working hours shall only proceed when established by current provisions on the matter, or stipulated in individual contracts, Collective Labor Agreements, or other collective agreements entered into with the union representation in the company.”
The manager's statement is incorrect because the law does not exempt salaried employees from overtime; it only allows for reduced hours under specific conditions. Since the employee regularly works more than 45 hours per week, which exceeds the legal maximum, they are entitled to overtime compensation unless a valid exception applies.
What Scripture Says
God's Word on This
Luke 10:7 (NET)
“Stay in that same house, eating and drinking what they give you, for the worker deserves his pay. Do not move around from house to house.”
A worker's labour deserves fair compensation — requiring additional hours without additional pay violates this foundational principle.
James 5:4 (NET)
“Look, the pay you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.”
Withholding lawful overtime pay is a form of wage theft — Scripture describes it as a cry that reaches God himself.
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You Know the Law — But Do You Know What to Say?
Reading your rights is one thing. Using them under pressure — calmly, correctly, in the right words — is what actually protects you. Members get the scripted rebuttal for this exact situation: what to say first, what to say if they push back, the tone to use, and the constitutional provision to cite. Practise out loud with audio until it's automatic.