I’m not saying it’s the best way, but I won a court case against an employer engaged in wage left with a simple, handwritten log in a battered notebook (actually, three notebooks - I’d been tracking my time since working as an independent contractor and still had the occasional freelance thing thrown in). Date at time, relevant times and events (start, stop, what was worked on) going down the page.
Apparently the fact it was in many different pen and pencil types with a few corrections along the way made it look more authentic, that it had indeed been maintained over a couple years rather than cooked up whole-cloth as the employer accused. It looked like a daily log that was actually used daily.
I walked into court being owed “X” and walked out 20 minutes later owed “X times 7”. Didn’t collect it all, but got all my original wages and a bit more out of it.
Former California WC Claims Adjuster here. In general, injuries at work but off the clock (Coming and going to work, on unpaid lunch break) aren’t compensable. So if you trip and fall in the parking lot on your way in, you may be able to file suit with the building for not keeping the parking lot in good condition, but you can’t file WC. HOWEVER - if you are working off the clock when injured (example: Doing work-related errands on your lunch break, and you get into a car accident) then it becomes compensable.
I’m an exempt employee (and in a field that is actually exempt, not just labeled as such by unscrupulous employers). I work more than 40 hours every week, but that’s reflected in my salary and quarterly and annual bonuses.
I’m a consultant who bills at the agreed-upon hourly rate, but the hourly rate is contingent on a guarantee of at least 35 hours per week (if someone wants my services but won’t guarantee me 35 hours per week, I’m more expensive).
I behave more like a salaried employee with most of my clients including current primary 35-hr-week client. I get immersed in the task at hand and I think about aspects of it when I’m not on the clock and sometimes go online and poke back in without tracking my hours. It all evens out. My client doesn’t always have the time to stoke me up with assigned tasks and responsibilities sufficient to keep me busy for 35 hours in each and every week but gets billed for them either way. We respect each other. It works.
Officially, I’m a 32-hour/week exempt employee (yeah, I know those two things don’t go together very often). I usually work a little more than that, sometimes even over 40. Sometimes it’s because my boss asks, usually it’s because there’s a fire that I can put out better than someone who’s “supposed” to be working. I’ve done this at my last couple of jobs, too.
It’s “free” in the sense that I don’t get paid for it then. But I’ve gotten some amazing reviews and raises, even in years where the company as a whole wasn’t giving them out, so somebody’s noticing and responding.
Looking back on it, my main takeaway is that I’ve been really lucky in the companies and people that I’ve worked for–at least more often than not.