Warehouse employee Rejinaldo Rosales, 34, at work in Tracy, Calif.
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More pay could become a reality for millions of us workers who now toil long hours without overtime under a new rule issued Wednesday by the Obama administration.
The new rules have raised the annual salary bar at which companies can deny overtime pay to almost $47,500 from the present $23,660, throwing open the opportunity for more workers to earn overtime pay. The threshold will be $47,500 a year, up from the current $23,660. But it’s sure to face opposition from some business owners.
Up to 12.5 million salaried workers could benefit from the new rules because the higher threshold will make it harder for employers to classify them as managerial, the pro-labor Economic Policy Institute said.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Labor issued its final rule regarding overtime regulations.
President Obama used the weekly White House address on Saturday to tout his recent decree, which expands the number of US workers eligible for overtime pay.
The percent of salaried workers automatically eligible for overtime has fallen to 7 percent from 62 percent in 1975. “They are the people who take care of your customers”, Shea said. “They feel like they lost leverage”. “They go to the bank and deposit the money”. The rule, which is set to take effect in December, would double the salary threshold at which businesses are required to pay employees overtime.
The White House reports only seven percent of full-time workers qualify for overtime now.
Some employers have welcomed the change, and Vice President Joe Biden will meet with one of those on Wednesday.
Industry groups such as Argentum, formerly the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA), have spoken out against the new salary threshold, noting that the rule will only compound existing labor strains. “Instead, they’re going to make the rational change and they’re going to change jobs”.
Barrasso says, “Once again, the Obama administration is using executive action to force a new job-crushing rule on American families and small businesses”.
She said the new rules will boost income for low- and middle-income households, and encourage more hiring, as workers spread work to more workers “instead of overworking a few”.
Now that I’m eligible for overtime will I have to punch a time clock?
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It was recently announced by the White House that workers who earn less than $913 a week will be eligible for overtime pay if they exceed 40 hours a week.
