FLSA White-Collar Exemptions To Be Amended

The Fair Labor Standards Act, enacted in 1938, is an employee friendly law that sets forth certain standards that apply to nearly every U.S. employer. Two of its key provisions are the minimum wage and overtime compensation requirements. Pursuant to the FLSA, all workers must make at least minimum wage and all non-exempt workers are entitled to overtime pay at a rate of one and one half their hourly wage. Several exemptions exists including the executive, administrative and professional exemptions. In order for your employer to treat you as exempt, your salary cannot be less than $455 per week and your principal duties must fall into one these “white collar” classifications.

Because exempt workers are not entitled to overtime pay, determining whether a particular worker is exempt or non-exempt is a critical issue, and often leads to overtime pay lawsuits.

If you have questions concerning whether you are getting all the pay you are entitled to, and whether you should be classified as exempt or non-exempt, it is a good idea to consult with an experienced Georgia wage and hour attorney who can evaluate your particular situation and address your concerns.

The $455 salary test was first adopted to exclude upper-level and managerial employees from the overtime provisions. However, over the years this benchmark has not increased, and now wage earners who rightly deserve overtime pay are not getting the compensation they deserve.

President Obama is seeking to amend the white-collar overtime exemption to address this inequity. As explained by President Obama, the white-collar exemption’s low salary means “unfortunately, today, millions of Americans aren’t getting the extra pay they deserve.”

A proposed rule modifying these exemptions will likely be published later this year.

As Atlanta wage and hour attorneys, we will be following any changes to this important provision. If you have any questions about the FLSA, or how changes to the exemption requirements may affect you, please contact our team of FLSA lawyers at Buckley Bala Wilson Mew LLP for an immediate case evaluation.