Labor Department Announces New Overtime Rules

The United States Department of Labor recently announced highly-anticipated changes to the white-collar exemptions from the overtime compensation requirement under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act that will allow administrative, executive, and professional employees who previously did not qualify for overtime pay to claim a time-and-a-half premium for hours worked over 40 in a week.

The new rule becomes effective on December 1, 2016 and more than doubles the annual salary threshold for the white-collar exemption from $23,336 ($455 per week) to $47, 476 ($913 per week). That means that any employee earning less than $47,476 per year will automatically qualify for overtime compensation, regardless of the employee’s job duties. Moreover, the exemption threshold will be increased automatically every three years beginning January 1, 2020.

Similarly, the annual overtime pay cap for so-called highly compensated employees will be increased from $100,000 to 134,004 and will also be adjusted automatically every three years beginning January 1, 2020. That means that for employees earning between $47,476 per year and $134,004 per year, the job duties tests for exemptions from the right to overtime compensation will apply to determine whether they are entitled to overtime pay. Employees earning more than $134,004 per year will generally not be entitled to overtime compensation regardless of their job duties.

If you are earning less than $47,476 per year and are not being paid one-and-a-half times your regular hourly pay for hours worked over 40 in a week, contact the overtime attorneys at Lenzo & Reis, LLC to claim the overtime pay to which you are entitled.