As the Washington Post anticipated this morning, today was the day for release by DOL of a new and improved version of the new and improved, but much maligned, overtime regulations. The Post’s read was that this was an improvement for employees: “Plan Expands Eligibility for Overtime Pay”
The Labor Department will allow workers who earn up to $100,000 a year to be eligible for overtime pay, a substantial shift upward from an earlier proposal that Democrats had promised to make an issue in the presidential campaign.
More low-wage workers would become automatically eligible for overtime under the final rules, due to be released today, according to Labor Department documents describing the regulation. Read more
For a good overall discussion that may be already somewhat dated due to the changes announced today (although published less than a week ago), see: “Overtime overhaul; New rules expected soon governing who gets paid overtime and when” by Chiree McCain for Business First of Columbus.
For a current analysis from a pro-employer standpoint, see: “The New Overtime Regulations: Clearer Rules, Fewer Conflicts” by Paul Kersey of the Heritage Foundation
This morning, the Department of Labor released new regulations governing overtime pay that will make it easier for employers to figure out which employees must receive it. While the full impact of the regulations has yet to be determined, they appear to provide several much-needed updates and clarifications to exemptions from the Fair Labor Standards Act. These improvements will limit costly lawsuits and should make it easier for businesses to expand their payrolls. . . .
The old overtime rules left employers in a bind. Which employees were exempt was not always clear, and court rulings on overtime have been inconsistent difficult to predict. . . .
The regulations that were released today do not represent a major shift in policy; workers in occupations that customarily receive overtime pay are not likely to lose it. But the new regulations do provide clarity to the numerous grey areas that have developed over the last fifty years. . . .
That there is now less legal uncertainty regarding overtime—due to the replacement of outdated and unclear regulations—should make employers more willing to hire. While many details still have to be explored and worked out in the workplace, the new regulations have the potential to provide a significant benefit to the nation’s economy.
Read more
Here’s the DOL’s page with links to various explanations of the new regulations, and here are the regulations themselves [.pdf].
John Kerry apparently didn’t have time to read the new regulations before coming out with a union-vote-suckup press release:
The Bush administration’s changes to overtime pay strike a severe blow to what little economic security working families have left as a result of Bush’s failed policies.
Overtime pay makes up a significant part of workers’ income. To deny this long-established right to workers is an outrage. Denying it to millions of American working families during this jobs crisis demonstrates once again the Bush administration’s disregard for the struggles every day Americans are facing.
Today’s action - imposed over the opposition of the vast majority of Americans and much of the Congress - demonstrates the urgent need for leadership committed to strengthening the economic security of working families, instead of undermining it.
Paid for by John Kerry for President, Inc.
That’s the whole press release –three references to “working families” and two references to “workers” in three short paragraphs — and no recognition of the concessions the Bush administration made. of course lots of “working families” and “workers” have always been exempt from overtime, but then I guess we don’t really count as “workers” in the Democratic party’s class warfare lingo.
Finally, a Washington Post article from my backlog (originally published 4/10/04) on the overtime litigation problem: “Overtime-Pay Complaints End Up in Court More Often” (by Kirstin Downey) and an example from the Chicago Tribune of a peculiar overtime suit: “Museum hit with overtime lawsuit”
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