The Department of Labor increased the minimum salary threshold to qualify as a exempt position from $35,568 to $43,888 on July 1, 2024. Now it is time to prepare for the next jump to $58,565 effective January 1, 2025. The increase is about $15,000 per year over the July increase and $23,000 over January 1, 2024.  That’s a lot of money.

Getting ready for the upcoming changes is not as easy as it looks. Not being totally prepared for the changes can be devastating to your organization from both a financial and employee relations standpoint. How will you implement these changes? Will converting employees from exempt to non-exempt have an effect on your benefits? If so, how will you manage through these changes? These are just a few questions you have to consider.

These increases amount to nearly $33,000 per year. That’s a lot of money. Getting ready for the upcoming changes. Not being totally prepared for the changes can be devastating to your organization from both a financial and employee relations standpoint.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is one of the most misunderstood employment laws in the country. Basically, it governs the payment of wages and who must be paid overtime. To make things more confusing, the Department of Labor has implemented a number of exemptions to the requirement to pay overtime such as the White-Collar Exemptions and the 7(i) exemption for retail and service establishments. The DOL also allows different ways of computing overtime pay.

To add to the confusion, Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, New York and Washington have developed their own rules that are different from Federal Law. Thirty-three states have implemented minimum wages that are higher than the Federal Minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. In addition, many municipalities have their own minimum wage laws.

Many organizations do not understand their responsibilities with regard to what types of positions qualify as white-collar exemptions, how to handle commissions, shift differential and production bonuses for hourly employees, and other nuances of complying such as handling training and travel time.

The FLSA is a Federal Law, but employers must know that many states, municipalities, and any type of governmental contract may have their own rules regarding minimum wage and overtime.

Maintaining compliance is critical to your business. Failing to do so can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

• Gain an understanding of the New provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act regarding exempt employees
• Know the White-Collar Exemptions and how they are determined
• Determining other exemptions and overtime calculations
• Correctly calculating overtime pay for employees who receive commissions, production bonuses and shift differential
• Know the minimum wage in areas in which your organization operates
• How to pay for training, travel time, meal breaks or employees on-call
• Get an update on various State Regulations