Comp time, also known as compensatory time off, is a tactic that an employer may try to use to avoid paying an employee for overtime hours that they already worked.
For instance, say that an employee works for 44 hours during the week. They should be entitled to time and a half for the final four hours under New York law. Instead, their employer tells them that they can just come in four hours late the following Monday, believing that this balances out their pay and that overtime pay will no longer be necessary.
As a general rule, for non-exempt employees in the private sector, comp time cannot be used. The employee deserves to be paid time and a half and should not be given time off instead. There are some exceptions for exempt workers or those in the public sector, but for most employees, overtime wage rates must be used instead of comp time.
Issues with fair compensation
One of the major issues with comp time is simply that it may not pay the employee a fair amount.
In the example above, the employee has earned time and a half. Giving them four hours off only pays them at their standard wage rate. To actually give them time and a half, they would need six hours off.
In other words, allowing private-sector employers to use comp time could mean that employees are getting shortchanged, and so it should not be done. They should simply be paid time and a half for overtime hours, and the next work week will be calculated independently.
As an employee, if you believe you have been unfairly paid for overtime, it is important to know exactly what legal steps you can take.