Salaried Worker Overtime Law Postponed

The decision regarding the highly debated change to the salary worker overtime threshold was set to go into effect December 1, 2016. However, due to court actions, a decision for the implementation of the law has now been postponed until May 1, 2017. This is the second postponement and appeal made by the Department of Justice on behalf of the Department of Labor since a Texas judge blocked the law from taking effect back in November 2016.

Background of the Salary Law
The law was expected to require employers to track and pay overtime to an additional four million salaried workers nationwide. The law would accomplish this change by dramatically raising the salary threshold required to exempt the worker from overtime pay. To learn more about the Overtime Final Rule law, see our blog from last November about the effects of the new salaried employee overtime law on employers.

May 1, 2017 Postponement
There was much speculation in the weeks following the injunction made by U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant of Texas, which granted the motion for a preliminary injunction to restrict the implementation of the law. Since the announcement, there has been very little information for employers about what is going on with the law. That is until recently.

According to the Department of Labor website, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a 60 day postponement to May 1, 2017 for the decision to implement the proposed Overtime Final Rule or to uphold the current law. The request was made by the Department of Justice on behalf of the Department of Labor. This is the second appeal made by the Department of Labor disputing the judge ruling on the Overtime Final Rule. As stated on the Department of Labor website, the extension was requested in order "to allow incoming leadership personnel adequate time to consider the issues." Nevada v. DOL, No. 16-41606, Motion For Extension to File Reply (Feb. 17, 2017).

Tracking Salaried Worker Hours
If the law takes effect, employers will be required to begin tracking overtime hours for millions of salary workers. Some employers are waiting to find out the ruling before moving forward with finding a time keeping solution, while others are actively seeking ways to start tracking salary worker hours now.

Even though it is not required by law to track all salary worker hours, many have already began looking for ways to manage record keeping. There are a variety of benefits to tracking salary worker hours including the ability to accurately bill clients for labor hours and having historical records to view at any time.

Virtual TimeClock makes it easy for employers to track hourly and salaried employee hours and overtime. You can learn more about Virtual TimeClock software on our web site. We offer a free trial of Virtual TimeClock without any cost or obligation.

*UPDATE*
Since the posting of this blog in March the Department of Labor has announced that a Request for Information has been submitted. The deadline for the public to submit their opinions on the law is September 25, 2017. Visit the Department of Labor website for more information.