Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives

Yesterday, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a proposed rule that is expected to significantly increase the number of employees who are eligible for overtime.  The proposed rule increases the minimum salary threshold for exempt workers from the current level of $23,660 to $50,440.  The rule applies to the FLSA’s executive, administrative, professional, and computer employees exemptions, but not the outside sales exemption which does not have a salary basis requirement.

During his most recent State of the Union Address on January 28, 2014, President Barack Obama stated that one of his top priorities in the coming year was to address what he described as “stagnant wages.”  More importantly, he warned Congress that if they did not take steps to tackle the issue soon, he was prepared to attempt to address the issue unilaterally through exercise of his executive power.