Today (September 24, 2019) the U.S. Department of Labor announced new salary thresholds “necessary to exempt executive, administrative or professional employees from the minimum wage laws set forth in the “Fair Labor Standards Act.” The Department of Labor currently raised the “standard salary level” from the currently enforced level of 455 per week to $684 per week beginning January 1, 2020.

What this means that if you are an executive, administrative employee, you must be paid at least a salary of $684 per week ($35,568 per year) in order for your employer to be exempt from paying you over-time.

Federal and state laws set minimum wage standards and standards for when an employer must pay an employee overtime. An employee must be paid “time and a half” for every hour worked over 40 hours in a workweek. In some circumstances, employers make employees “salaried” in order to avoid having to pay employees overtime.

The new standard means that if your employer pays you less than $35,568 per year ($684 per week) you will be entitled to overtime pay for every hour over 40 hours you work in a workweek after January 1, 2020. Currently, the standard is $455 per week or $23,660 per year.

If you have questions about minimum wage laws, overtime laws or any other questions related to wages and payment please call us. 618-254-0055