If employees are paid an annual salary, they are not owed overtime for putting in more than 40 hours of time and attendance in a workweek, right? That's what many employers believe, but it's not necessarily the case. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) dictates that pay is just one criteria that must be met for an employee to be classified as exempt from overtime pay. Specific job duties and the degree of authority are just as important in the determination.

This is why 150 of JPMorgan Chase's appraisers are part of a lawsuit that's currently seeking class-action status in federal courts. Attorney Bryan Schwartz reports that the employees are seeking overtime back wages to the tune of millions of dollars.

The financial institution misclassified the employees as exempt under the administrative provision, the suit explains. However, they were not given the authority to make decisions about property values based on their evaluations, which is one of the primary considerations for exemptions, Schwartz alleges.

"Chase has its production appraisers working upwards of 70 hours a week, through weekends and holidays, to meet Chase's billing requirements," said Long Beach resident Kenneth Lee, who is the lead plaintiff on the lawsuit. "Chase is running an appraisal sweatshop, and it's time that Chase be required to compensate its appraisers fairly."

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