Sued for Overtime

Dentist Hit a Brick Wall: He Must Pay €11,000

The dentist didn’t want to pay his assistant’s overtime—but in the end, he gave in(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

A woman from Linz worked as a dental assistant for a dentist in the central region for nearly six and a half years. After her termination by mutual agreement, 336 hours of overtime remained unpaid. At first, her former boss refused to pay—but since she had documented everything precisely and the statute of limitations had not expired in this case, she was able to get the compensation she was owed.

The dental assistant had meticulously documented her overtime hours month after month. At the time of the mutual termination, her time account showed 336 hours of overtime. The employer should have paid her for these hours, including overtime premiums, as part of her final settlement. However, he did not do so. In addition, he issued her a reference letter that failed to list key areas of her responsibilities.

Time Account Settled
The woman from Linz turned to the Upper Austrian Chamber of Labor. The Chamber intervened with the employer, who corrected the employment reference but refused to pay the overtime hours. He argued that these hours had already expired under the statute of limitations and therefore did not have to be paid. Lawyers from the Chamber made it clear that, due to the time account system, there was neither expiration nor a statute of limitations, meaning all outstanding hours were due. In the end, she had to file a lawsuit to get her money. Even before the first court hearing, the employer finally paid the outstanding 11,000 euros gross.

Be Careful with Expiration Deadlines
AK President Andreas Stangl advises that, in cases of outstanding wage claims, employees should promptly contact the works council, the union, or the Chamber of Labor. As a general rule, there is a three-year statute of limitations. However, many collective bargaining agreements or individual employment contracts stipulate significantly shorter statutes of limitations for certain wage claims. If employees do not assert these claims in a timely manner, they can no longer be pursued. “The Chamber of Labor is strongly advocating for the abolition of these limitation periods. It’s important that employees contact us promptly if they aren’t being paid certain components of their wages or salary,” says Stangl.