Faerine

Hello,

Does anyone know when an employer should start paying the H1B prevailing
wage to an employee working on F1 OPT, with a pending H1B petition? The
H1B (if approved on time) should start immediately as the OPT ends.
My employer thinks that they should start paying the prevailing wage
when the change of status goes through, but I remember reading somewhere
that they have to start after the H1B petition has been pending for some
time. Does anyone know more about that, and do you have any links to
official documents with any rules regarding that matter?

Thanks!

Ian-Mstm

> Hello,
>
> Does anyone know when an employer should start paying the H1B
> prevailing wage to an employee working on F1 OPT, with a pending
> H1B petition? The H1B (if approved on time) should start
> immediately as the OPT ends.
> My employer thinks that they should start paying the prevailing
> wage when the change of status goes through, but I remember
> reading somewhere that they have to start after the H1B petition
> has been pending for some time. Does anyone know more about that,
> and do you have any links to official documents with any rules
> regarding that matter?
>
> Thanks!

I'd be surprised if an employer is required to pay anything more than
minimum wage regardless of the job.

Ian

JulianB

> I'd be surprised if an employer is required to pay anything more than
> minimum wage regardless of the job.
>
> Ian

Employers are bound by law to pay an H-1B employee the prevailing wage.

Faerine

> Employers are bound by law to pay an H-1B employee the
> prevailing wage.

I know. What I am asking is *when* they should start paying the
prevailing wage - when the H1B status becomes effective, or earlier,
while the H1B petition is still pending and the employee is in OPT
status. Thanks!

JulianB

> I know. What I am asking is *when* they should start paying the
> prevailing wage - when the H1B status becomes effective, or earlier,
> while the H1B petition is still pending and the employee is in OPT
> status. Thanks!

No clue. I was pointing out that the guy that first responded to you was
incorrect.

J. J. Farrell

ian-mstm wrote:
> > Hello,
> >
> > Does anyone know when an employer should start paying the H1B
> > prevailing wage to an employee working on F1 OPT, with a pending
> > H1B petition? The H1B (if approved on time) should start
> > immediately as the OPT ends.
> > My employer thinks that they should start paying the prevailing
> > wage when the change of status goes through, but I remember
> > reading somewhere that they have to start after the H1B petition
> > has been pending for some time. Does anyone know more about that,
> > and do you have any links to official documents with any rules
> > regarding that matter?
> >
> > Thanks!
>
> I'd be surprised if an employer is required to pay anything more than
> minimum wage regardless of the job.

When an employee is an H-1B, the employer is required to pay the wage
declared on the LCA. That should be the local prevailing wage for the
job, or else the LCA/H-1B shouldn't have been approved.

I don't know the answer to the OP's question. The employer has to pay
the LCA wage once the employee's status changes to H-1B, but I don't
know of any requirement to do so beforehand in this sort of case.

Joe Feise

Faerine wrote on 07/26/06 12:23:

>> Employers are bound by law to pay an H-1B employee the
>> prevailing wage.
>
> I know. What I am asking is *when* they should start paying the
> prevailing wage - when the H1B status becomes effective, or earlier,
> while the H1B petition is still pending and the employee is in OPT
> status. Thanks!


When the person is in H1B status. A good employer, though, would already pay
that, anyway.

-Joe

Boiler

> No clue. I was pointing out that the guy that first responded to you
> was incorrect.

http://www.kkeane.com/

might help

I would go for H Status.

NCTarheel

> I know. What I am asking is *when* they should start paying the
> prevailing wage - when the H1B status becomes effective, or earlier,
> while the H1B petition is still pending and the employee is in OPT
> status. Thanks!

I believe it would only be after the H-1 status is approved. You cannot
officially start working on H-1 status for which the prevailing wage was
determined until the application is approved, so no question of being
paid that wage.

Andrew Wilson

> Hello,
>
> Does anyone know when an employer should start paying the H1B
> prevailing wage to an employee working on F1 OPT, with a pending
> H1B petition? The H1B (if approved on time) should start
> immediately as the OPT ends.
> My employer thinks that they should start paying the prevailing
> wage when the change of status goes through, but I remember
> reading somewhere that they have to start after the H1B petition
> has been pending for some time. Does anyone know more about that,
> and do you have any links to official documents with any rules
> regarding that matter?
>
> Thanks!

You must start paying the prevailing wage the first day of employment
under H-1B status. If you filed a change of status from F-1 to H-1B,
the first day under H-1B employment would be the first day listed on the
approval notice. For many, that would be October 1, 2006. While still
working under OPT, the prevailing wage does not need to be paid.

If the individual is coming from abroad, the first day would not
necessarily be the first day listed on the approval notice, but
obviously the first day s/he is physically in the US and starts
employment under the H-1B approval notice.

Regards,

Andrew M. Wilson, Esq.
Serotte Reich Wilson, LLP

www.srwlawyers.com
www.h-1b.squarespace.com