The definition of a manager is ambiguous enough under current regulations that restaurant or retail workers who spend most of their time doing manual labor or serving customers can be deemed “executives” exempt from overtime, Eisenbrey said.
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Obama is unveiling a proposal to require overtime pay for workers who earn almost $1,000 per week. Yet that salary – amounting to as tiny as $23,660 a year – would put a family of four close to the poverty line.
The proposed rule changes – which will be subject to public comment before being finalized – may not necessarily mean more money for the workers affected.
The change “goes to the heart of what it means to be middle class in America”, said Labor Secretary Thomas Perez.
“We’ve got to keep making sure hard work is rewarded”, Mr. Obama wrote in a column published Monday in The Huffington Post.
Tuesday, the Obama administration will propose changes to the rules determining which workers receive overtime pay. They often work long hours, but get paid less per hour than many workers they supervise. Obama is scheduled to discuss the economy during a trip to La Crosse, Wisconsin, on Thursday.
The Labor Department is proposing a new overtime rule that will expand the number of middle-class workers who qualify for time-and-a-half pay. A spokesman for Chipotle declined to comment on the case. The Economic Policy Institute, a liberal think tank, recently estimated that a threshold of $984 a week would cover 15 million people.
Still, supporters of expanding overtime coverage said these responses could also benefit workers and the economy.
The National Retail Foundation said that “most workers would be unlikely to see an increase in take-home pay, the use of part-time workers could increase, and retailers operating in rural states could see a disproportionate impact”.
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“It’s a job creation measure”, said Daniel Hamermesh, an economist at the University of Texas, Austin. Politico reports that according to administration aides, employees working fewer hours could lead to job growth, as companies will be forced to make new hires.
