As you may recall, the DOL previously issued a Final Overtime Rule that was set to increase the minimum salary threshold for white collar exempt/salaried employees from $455 per week or $23,660 annually to $913 per week or $47,476 annually.
On November 22, 2016, a Texas Federal Court judge issued a nationwide preliminary injunction stopping the Department of Labor (DOL) from implementing and enforcing the Final Overtime Rule. Earlier today, July 25, 2017, the DOL announced that it will publish tomorrow, Wednesday, July 26, 2017, a Request for Information (RFI) called “Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer”.
This RFI is intended to give the public a chance to provide the DOL with information that will, in the words of the DOL, “aid the Department in formulating a proposal to revise these regulations.” Once the RFI is published, the public will have until September 25, 2017 to make comments.
What types of questions will the DOL ask?
The DOL explained as follows: “The RFI solicits feedback on questions related to the salary level test, the duties test, varying cost-of-living across different parts of the U.S., inclusion of non-discretionary bonuses and incentive payments to satisfy a portion of the salary level, the salary test for highly compensated employees, and automatic updating of the salary level tests.”
What does this mean for you, as an employer?
The DOL is likely to revise the Final Overtime Rule to an amount that is more manageable for employers, as opposed to repeal it entirely. The new DOL Secretary, Alexander Acosta, has indicated a preference for giving the salary threshold a cost-of-living increase, as opposed to the full amount that was put in place by the DOL under the Obama Administration.
You have the opportunity to make your voices heard. This is particularly critical for the mid to smaller size employers and non-profit/governmental employers that do not seem to be contemplated in the Final Overtime Rule.
The Eastern Pennsylvania Employment Log (EPELog) is a publication of the KingSpry Employment Law Practice Group. Jeffrey T. Tucker, Esquire, is our editor-in-chief. EPELog is meant to be informational and does not constitute legal advice.
