San Francisco’s booming economy owes a lot to the tech industry. The tech industry can be very competitive, and employees often have to put in long hours to get their jobs done. While workers who receive an hourly wage are typically eligible for overtime pay once they work a certain number of hours in a week, the same cannot be said for all salaried employees. The number of salaried employees who must be paid for overtime is about to increase thanks to new federal regulations.
It is estimated by the Department of Labor that the new regulations, which will go into effect December 1, 2016, will grant overtime eligibility to more than 4.2 million additional salaried employees. At present, employers are exempt from having to pay overtime to white-collar salaried employees making more than $23,660. As of December 1st, that level is raised to $47,476. This means that these employees should be paid time-and-a-half for every hour worked past the 40-hours-per-week threshold.
However, it should be noted that there are a number of adjustments employers can make to avoid paying the time-and-a-half rate. For example, an employer can raise an employee’s salary above $47,476. In addition, they could also hire other employees to pick up the hours that would otherwise be worked by a salaried employee. They may even cut an employee’s base pay to compensate for the overtime, which would be perfectly legal.
Regardless of how they wish to address the changes, employers must adhere to the new regulations. So if you are a salaried employee whose pay rate is affected by these laws, it is important to make sure that you receive the overtime you deserve. If after these regulations have gone into effect, you come to believe that you are not being compensated for the hours you are working, you may wish to get in touch with an attorney who is knowledgeable about overtime laws. The attorney could go over the pay arrangement you have with your employer and work to make sure you are treated fairly.
Source: USA TODAY, “Overtime pay: What you need to know about the new rule,” Paul Davidson, May 21, 2016