UWG FLSA Updates and Implementation Information

On May 18, 2016, the Department of Labor announced its final rule updating the FLSA overtime regulations with a December 1, 2016 deadline.

The Department of Labor’s Final Rule on Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (the “Overtime Rule” or “Final Rule”) will strengthen overtime protections and provide greater clarity for both workers and employers alike across sectors, including higher education. The Final Rule updates the salary level required for the executive, administrative, and professional (“white collar”) exemptions to ensure that the FLSA’s intended overtime protections are fully implemented, and to simplify the identification of overtime-protected employees. The Department of Labor updated the salary level threshold above which certain “white collar” workers may be exempt from overtime to equal the 40th percentile of earnings of full-time salaried workers from the lowest wage Census Region. Once effective, the rule will raise the salary level from its previous amount of $455 per week (the equivalent of $23,660 a year) to $913 per week (the equivalent of $47,476 per year) in 2016. The rule will also raise the compensation level for highly compensated employees subject to a more minimal duties test from its previous amount of $100,000 to $134,004 annually. The Final Rule establishes a mechanism for automatically updating the salary level (and compensation level for highly compensated employees) every three years, with the first update to take place in 2020. Salaried white collar employees paid below the updated salary level are generally entitled to overtime pay; such employees paid at or above the salary level may be exempt from overtime pay if they primarily perform certain duties. These changes take effect on December 1, 2016. The Final Rule does not include any changes to the duties tests, which also affect the determination of who is exempt from overtime. Citation: (Wage and Hour Division, 2016)

In order to ensure timely compliance with the new regulations, The University of West Georgia has decided to implement the changes for the campus effective November 1, 2016.
For more information, please see the available resources herein.

All information is subject to change and will be updated as new materials are made available:

Department of Labor Guidance for Higher Education Institutions on Paying Overtime under the FLSA