My office hours have increased by 26 hours a month.. is my employer required to give me a raise? I took the salaried position when our office hours where as your see 26 hours less..

Good Luck, that is one of the downs of salary. Different story for hourly.

This is under ethics, not business law. Under business law, no they are not required to pay you extra. You did not say how many hours you were working, as a manager I often worked 65 to 75 hours a week on salary.

Ethically, why is the change, are they losing money and have to do this to keep the business open? If the company is in bad shape, perhaps from an ethics view point you should even take a reduced pay, for the good of the company.

If the company is merely trying to be greedy, then there is a issue where they should pay you for ethics.

But the real world does not operate by ethics, they work by laws. So sorry, no requirements

As noted, there is no legal requirement to raise your salary. In a free market economy, employers pay what they think will keep their employees.

On an ethical basis, it might matter why you are working more. If the staff was reduced and you are working longer to keep the workload, then you could make the argument, that the employer is still saving money.

Bottom line is, if you want a raise you need to make a case as to why you are worth more money.

Hold the phone, folks. Even if the employer isn't required to give a salaried person a raise when hours are increased, the change in job description qualifies that employee for unemployment insurance, even if he or she quits.

If you think you deserve a raise, ask for it, and see what happens, however I doubt seriously if your employer is required to give you a raise, and doubt if they would voluntarily. Read your contract.

Not sure I agree with the "Unemployment statement". When I went from hourly to salary, you were required to work what ever hours it took to get the job done. In fact being new to the salary arena meant that the guy on the bottom of the totem pole, more than likely was told to work the extra hours. A thing called "Seniority". No additional money either.

Joy is correct, if a person quits over a substantial change in their position, then they can qualify for unemployment. But I don't know if the OP's situation would qualify. That would be up to the local states dept of labor.

Unemployment law does indeed make it clear that a change in job description is grounds for UI. But YES, ask the UI office, because you don't want to be caught in a dispute, if the company policy about salaried hours wasn't clear when you were hired!

That being said, I agree that you should ask, and phrase it as sort of a given. "I expect pay to increase commensurate with the additional work hours required."

A recent study showed that men are much more likely to ask for raises than women. I have a feeling that after the '07-'08 recession, many employers stopped giving out raises routinely, and that asking has become a lot more common. Do you risk losing your job? You always are at risk.

Put it in writing. If you want a RAISE, past the commensurate part, add a sentence about how you feel that you deserve even more for your good work anyway. Keep a copy. Don't mention applying for UI at that time.
If they say no, are you prepared to quit and apply for UI? Anyone getting UI raises their premium, and they may change their mind, so that's when you tell them that you will be applying.

If they still say no, have a written notice that you are quitting in your pocket and hand it to them at that moment, so that they cannot fire you first. Grab your stuff and leave, unless they have paperwork to fill out for quitting, which many do.

Be forewarned that UI after quitting takes longer to start than after being laid off. The employer has the right to dispute the claim.
Never put it off, because it isn't retroactive.

All this depends a lot on how good an employee you are. Do you get in late, leave early, take long lunches, spend too much time in the restroom, go out to smoke, get in gab fests around the water cooler? Is so, I would consider just accepting the new hours.

While Joy has some good ideas, I would suggest that you explain WHY your hours have increased. That can help us help you present your request for a raise. Also include how long since your last raise etc.