Salary employee hours cut to 36 paid for 28

My husband's Company of approximately 50 people cut everyone's hours to 28 hours per week several months ago. That means that the salary staff were being compensated for 28 hours of salary instead of 40 hours and were expected to be there for at least 28 hours (though they were asked to put in more).

Hourly people if they had to work over 28 hours were compensated for each hour they worked. Salary were not compensated over 28 hours no matter how long they worked even if it was 50 hours a week. It was uncommon for them to put in that much extra but common to work between 32-40 hours.

Now they sent a letter out stating that everyone was expected to now report for 36 hours per week. One would think that everyone would then be paid for 36 per week including salary. But he was informed that his pay would not be changed - he would still be paid for 28. Hourly would be paid for 36 or more.

Is that even legal? This is in Arizona. Please help or direct me to somewhere I could find an answer if you know one.

Thanks so much!

That is a pay reduction and though usually legal he can quit and deem it a firing. He can collect unemployment if he wishes.

Except they didn't actually reduce his salary - they are paying him for less hours and he is collecting partial unemplyment for lost hours as long as he doesn't go over a certain number of hours per week. It is something his company applied for and was approved for.

In doing some research it seems like they cannot cut his hours as a salaried employee, that if he works at all during a week they have to pay him his full salary if they are the ones telling him not to come in for the full 40. They could however have him not come in at all for a week and then not pay him that week. It seems like what they are legally supposed to do if they want to cut what they are paying him is reduce his salary in which case they would have to give him written notice they are doing so.

[mcarson]

I assume by salary, that you mean salaried exempt, correct? What is his job? What are his duties?
If you are unsure if he is exempt or not here is a list of exemptions: elaws - FLSA Overtime Security Advisor

Yes sorry - salary - exempt. He is an IT Director and we looked through everything and it seems that he meets the requirements to be considered exempt. He plans, maintains and builds all individual systems and servers, does all the IT security, custom reporting for accounting, does training in software the company uses, and a number of other things not typically done by IT. But basically he is the sole person in charge for IT in the firm that was around 80 people and is now down to maybe around 40.