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How Do The New Overtime Rules Help Me? I Need The Top Wage And Hour Lawyer In Ohio!

On Behalf of | May 18, 2016 | Wage: Overtime |

Best Ohio Overtime Wage Attorney Answer: Under the new wage and hour rules, will I be entitled to overtime? What has the Obama administration changed about the overtime law? Do changes in the overtime law allow my boss to start paying me on an hourly basis instead of a salary?

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The most simple way to address the biggest effect of the new overtime rules is this: If you are not making $47,476.00 per year – regardless of whether you are paid hourly or salary – your job will be required to pay you time and half for all hours that you work over 40 hours per work week starting December 1, 2016.

In a significant victory for hardworking employees everywhere, the Obama administration and the Department of Labor (“DOL“) have finalized changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA“) that will have a profound impact on millions of employees. As our wage and hour attorneys have previously blogged, this a really big deal (see As Salaried Employee, Am I Exempt From Overtime Pay?; What Is The Minimum Salary To Be Exempt From Overtime Pay Requirements?)

The changes to the law mean that the days of retail “managers” working 60 hours a week for $25,000 a year are over. Beginning December 1, 2016, any employee whom is classified as exempt must be paid a minimum of $913.00 per week (or $47,476.00 per year) for the employer to be able to avoid paying overtime. Looking at this on an hourly level, if you are salaried but your hourly rate breaks down to less than $22.825 per hour, you should be getting paid time and a half for each and every hour that you work per week past 40 hours.

This is more than double the current rate of $455.00 per week, or $23,660 per year. As a result employers who pay their exempt employees have three choices: (1) give their exempt people a raise, (2) change these employees to non-exempt and pay overtime, or (3) reduce these employee’s hours to 40 or less per week. No matter what choice employers make, their underpaid exempt employees stand to benefit substantially.

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Not only is the minimum threshold for exemption under the FLSA increasing; it is now subject to automatic revision every three years. Beginning in 2020, the DOL will automatically adjust the minimum salary to the 40th percentile of full time salaried workers in the lowest-wage census region. What that means in plain language is that the DOL will take a look at what salaries are being paid at that time, and tie the minimum requirement to what individuals who make more than 40 percent of other salaried workers, but who earn less than 60 percent of other salaried workers.

These changes do not mean that exempt employees will necessarily earn $913.00 a week. For the first time, the rules will allow employers to count non-discretionary bonuses and commissions for up to 10 percent of the required salary. This means that employees could be paid as little as $821.70 per week or $42,728.40 a year in base salary, as long as bonuses and commissions bring them over the minimum. Sadly, I fear this new rule is certain to be exploited by some employers, who will use it to pay below the minimum, and then find some way to avoid paying the bonus or commission before it is due (such as by terminating that employee right before they get their bonus). Of course, overtime law lawyers will be there to sue for wage theft when employers try this or any other underhanded schemes. Only time will tell.

Even at today’s low salary threshold, employers routinely violate the FLSA in an effort to cheat workers out of the pay they are entitled to.

If you believe that your employer is not paying you all of your wages for all of your lawfully earned overtime compensation at a rate of one and half times your normal wages as requires under the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act or Ohio Minimum Fair Wage Standards laws or you are an nonexempt employee that has been misclassified as exempt or independent contractor, contact the attorneys at Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm today for a free and confidential initial consultation. The wage and hour lawyers at Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm will provide you with the best options for your overtime pay dispute situation. If you even think that you may be entitled to overtime pay that you are not being paid, call 866-797-6040.

Disclaimer:

The materials available at the top of this overtime, wage and hour web page and at this employment law website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. If you are still asking, “Am I entitled to overtime?”, “Does my job have to pay me for …”, “My paycheck is not right…” or “What do I do if…”, the your best option is to contact an Ohio overtime attorney to obtain advice with respect to FLSA questions or any particular employment law issue. Use and access to this employment law website or any of the links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship. The legal opinions expressed at the top of this page or through this site are the opinions of the individual lawyer and may not reflect the opinions of Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm, Brian Spitz, or any individual attorney.

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