Wage and Hour Division May 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees
Document Number: 2016-11754
Type: Rule
Date: 2016-05-23
Agency: Wage and Hour Division, Employment Standards Administration, Department of Labor
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA or Act) guarantees a minimum wage for all hours worked during the workweek and overtime premium pay of not less than one and one-half times the employee's regular rate of pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. While these protections extend to most workers, the FLSA does provide a number of exemptions. In this Final Rule, the Department of Labor (Department) revises final regulations under the FLSA implementing the exemption from minimum wage and overtime pay for executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, and computer employees. These exemptions are frequently referred to as the ``EAP'' or ``white collar'' exemptions. To be considered exempt under part 541, employees must meet certain minimum requirements related to their primary job duties and, in most instances, must be paid on a salary basis at not less than the minimum amounts specified in the regulations. In this Final Rule the Department updates the standard salary level and total annual compensation requirements to more effectively distinguish between overtime-eligible white collar employees and those who may be exempt, thereby making the exemption easier for employers and employees to understand and ensuring that the FLSA's intended overtime protections are fully implemented. The Department sets the standard salary level for exempt EAP employees at the 40th percentile of weekly earnings of full-time salaried workers in the lowest-wage Census Region. The Department also permits employers to satisfy up to 10 percent of the standard salary requirement with nondiscretionary bonuses, incentive payments, and commissions, provided these forms of compensation are paid at least quarterly. The Department sets the total annual compensation requirement for an exempt Highly Compensated Employee (HCE) equal to the annualized weekly earnings of the 90th percentile of full-time salaried workers nationally. The Department also adds a provision to the regulations that automatically updates the standard salary level and HCE compensation requirements every three years by maintaining the earnings percentiles set in this Final Rule to prevent these thresholds from becoming outdated. Finally, the Department has not made any changes in this Final Rule to the duties tests for the EAP exemption.
Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees; Announcement of Time-Limited Non-Enforcement Policy for Providers of Medicaid-Funded Services for Individuals With Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities in Residential Homes and Facilities With 15 or Fewer Beds
Document Number: 2016-11753
Type: Rule
Date: 2016-05-23
Agency: Wage and Hour Division, Employment Standards Administration, Department of Labor
The Department of Labor's (Department or DOL) Final Rule revising the regulations for implementing the exemption from minimum wage and overtime pay for executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, and computer employees, published in the Rules section of today's Federal Register, will become effective December 1, 2016. This document announces a time-limited non-enforcement policy for providers of Medicaid-funded services for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities in residential homes and facilities with 15 or fewer beds. From December 1, 2016 to March 17, 2019, the Department will not enforce the updated salary threshold of $913 per week for the subset of employers covered by this non-enforcement policy. Throughout the duration of this non-enforcement policy, the Department will engage in outreach and technical assistance efforts, including to providers of services in settings covered by this policy. This non-enforcement policy does not apply to providers of Medicaid- funded services for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities in residential care facilities with 16 or more beds.
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