is it legal to pay LESS than min wage

[T77911S]

my daughter has a 4 yr degree for equestrian business, loves horses and wants to work in that field.
she just took a job at a vary large farm.
they are paying her $300 a week plus a room in a roach infested house that has 2 other girls there.
here first day was yesterday. her hours are, 7am to 7pm, dinner then go back out and blanket the horses plus one week end a month they have to feed the horses.
that's like $4 an hr not including the board!!
yes that is just starting pay but it does not go up much.

this is making me furious the more I think about what they are doing to these girls that work there.

[legion]

There are lots of exceptions to minimum wage laws. One of them is agricultural work.

[sammyg2]

The girls are doing to to themselves, it's voluntary employment.

[asphaltgambler]

^^^^ Yes - but the 'work' has to be directly related to crops / production. What was the initial agreement of employment terms? Weren't they discussed?

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by T77911S

this is making me furious the more I think about what they are doing to these girls that work there.

I understand. Some humans look at other humans as if they were nothing more than a resource to be exploited. It's little consolation, but In terms of man's inhumanity to man your daughter is getting off easy.

[mgatepi]

First off.....what were you thinking... letting her get a degree in Equestrian business?

[greglepore]

https://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs12.pdf

Agriculture is not exempt from minimum wage. Certain types of ag labor are, and overtime not required. However, issue in op's situation is the board, and what its valued at.

Not atypical in the equestrian field to have conditions like this, though. It sucks, but its pretty much the way it is.

[drkshdw]

Yes it is legal as long as their hourly wage combined with the employer valued lodging combined together is at least the minimum wage.

Read this: https://www.dol.gov/whd/homecare/credit_wages_faq.htm

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by mgatepi

First off.....what were you thinking... letting her get a degree in Equestrian business?

There is a lot of money in horses. Based on the five hundred acre horse farm down the road it doesn't look like a bad field to be in. With her degree she should work her way up to management quickly.

[mgatepi]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

There is a lot of money in horses. Based on the five hundred acre horse farm down the road it doesn't look like a bad field to be in. With her degree she should work her way up to management quickly.

I must admit I know NOTHING about the horse business or horses.... my remark was made in jest....sorry.

[asphaltgambler]

Part of the reason there is money in horses is the amount of people of all income brackets willing to spend their last dime on them. Fueling that is a fair amount of the 'hands-on' labor also willing to work for almost nothing to be in contact with the animals - some hoping the big money will rub off on them.

Other than stud fees from thorough breds, the horses themselves are essentially debits over the long haul.

[cstreit]

If they value the lodging high enough - then yes. Unethical but legal.

Supply and Demand unfortunately. As long as the farm continues to get the quality of worker they want for what they are paying it won't change either.

[Rick Lee]

Sheesh. I interned on Capitol Hill for six months, 40 hrs. a week and didn't get a dime. I got a few free lunches and a lot of networking for my trouble. Pretty sure that's still how it works there too.

[T77911S]

she is working directly for a horse trainer at the farm, no agg work

I figure with housing she is making about $3hr.

she loves horses, she loves being outside.

I did not meet the other 2 girls and I don't want to sound snobby, in fact I am sad for them, but from what my wife said I am not sure but she thinks one did not graduate high school.
one of the girls mothers was there when she moved in. the place was FILTHY!! roaches everywhere!! neither girl or the mother lifted a finger to help them clean the place.
there was grease from cooking all over everything in the kitchen, dirt and dust all in the grease.
it really makes you wonder if the parents ever taught their kids how to clean and what their house must look like.

[mepstein]

Similar to when my kids worked at summer camp. $300/week. Worked a 24 hour day. Their choice and a good experience.

[Arizona_928]

Independent contractor. Pay you whatever you'll agree to.

Only comparison I can see is military... That and running CQ three times a week.

[cairns]

I did a similar thing when I got out of the Army. I just wanted some where to live that wasn't the parents house and loved horses. There was never any money in it that I saw- guy who owned the farm went bankrupt, stiffed the vet, the feed store and others. Even better breeders in my area (Maryland) aren't making much money in the horse business.

I then got a real job and went to college.....but I learned a lot from the experience and know how to palpate a mare, give IVs etc.

[Dan J]

Some very slippery folks in the horse business

[vash]

i've never heard of that degree before. interesting!!

i wish her the best luck. i dont know enough about it to comment beyond that.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by greglepore

Agriculture is not exempt from minimum wage. Certain types of ag labor are, and overtime not required. However, issue in op's situation is the board, and what its valued at.

I've heard that those greasy cockroached farm beds out in the stix are in quite high demand these days, so rent could be anything..lol. But shouldn't that be a separate line item? As in they get paid minimum salary but then the extra is deducted on paycheck before payday. Or is the farmer calling the extra hours "helping out" or a separate "unpaid internship" (which are supposedly on the rise).

Found this for salaried requirements, but not sure if SC or that locale has specific labor exemptions, or if it would apply.
Laws on Salary Employees Working Overtime | Chron.com
"Exempt employees are not entitled to extra pay for overtime under the provisions of the FLSA, regardless of how many hours in a week they work. When you are paid as an exempt employee, your salary must be at least $455 per week or $23,600 annually."

If she is young and making money on the plus side while starting out learning in a new business, I personally would not make waves.
Last couple years I put maybe 500+hrs into volunteer work and loved it.
If she needs to move on later, she should do it gracefully, but learn everything in the meantime.