Obama Is Bringing Overtime Pay To Millions Of Workers

[LebaneseDude 6,146]

Via HuffPo

The Labor Department announced Tuesday that it completed one of the most ambitious economic reforms of the Obama era, finalizing a new rule that will extend overtime protections to millions of additional workers.

The administration will accomplish that by raising what’s known as the overtime salary threshold. Nearly all workers earning salaries beneath that threshold are entitled to time-and-a-half pay whenever they work more than 40 hours in a week.

The current threshold is just $23,660. The White House will be doubling that number, to $47,476, guaranteeing overtime rights for salaried workers earning less than that. The Labor Department will now update the threshold every three years to make sure it keeps pace with inflation.

The White House estimates that the change will bring overtime rights to 4.2 million workers who are currently excluded. It will also clarify eligibility for another 8.9 million workers who may or may not have overtime protections under the current rules, officials said.

Business groups lobbied hard against the new rules, claiming they would lead employers to cut back on hours, and force workers to start tracking their time as hourly employees. What the rules will undoubtedly do is give many employers a hard choice: Either limit workers’ hours to 40 per week so they don’t incur the time-and-a-half premium, or start paying workers more for the extra time they work.

In a statement Tuesday, the National Retail Federation, a trade group for retailers, called the reforms a “career killer.” “With the stroke of a pen, the Labor Department is demoting millions of workers,” the group said. “In the retail sector alone, hundreds of thousands of career professionals will lose their status as salaried employees and find themselves reclassified as hourly workers, depriving them of the workplace flexibility and other benefits they so highly-value.”

The White House finalized the rule now so that Republicans in Congress can’t bottle it up through the Congressional Review Act. Repub best shot now would be attaching a rider to spending legislation to block it, but it’s unlikely Democrats or the White House would go along with that. The new rules are slated to go into effect on Dec. 1.

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Lame duck? Nope. 

[ALGAYDO 35,061]

This is such good news! Obama's gonna be getting **** done til the very last second. You go, Obama! 

[JbGaga 2,261]

This has to be the DUMBEST thing Ive ever heard of....  No business in there right mind is going to let any employee work overtime if they have to pay double. Instead they are going to cap them at 40 hours and not let anyone work overtime to get the time an a half which alot of peopl im sure are already getting. He is killing overtime!

He's vote pandering as usual like his push for a higher min wage hopeing people wont vote against more money in there pocket (Not that they would get any in this case). I just cant wait till the world ends at this point.

[JbGaga 2,261]

1 hour ago, NOT Marinara said:

This is such good news! Obama's gonna be getting **** done til the very last second. You go, Obama! 

Im just curious. Can you articulate to me why this is good news? Im trying to figure out how this helps anyone realistically.

[LebaneseDude 6,146]

6 hours ago, JbGaga said:

This has to be the DUMBEST thing Ive ever heard of....  No business in there right mind is going to let any employee work overtime if they have to pay double. Instead they are going to cap them at 40 hours and not let anyone work overtime to get the time an a half which alot of peopl im sure are already getting. He is killing overtime!

He's vote pandering as usual like his push for a higher min wage hopeing people wont vote against more money in there pocket (Not that they would get any in this case). I just cant wait till the world ends at this point.

This only affects SALARIED people who don't get paid overtime. 

I think you're perhaps confusing salary with wages?

Here's the difference:

The person receiving a salary is not paid a smaller amount for working fewer hours, nor is he paid more for working overtime.

Someone who is paid wages receives a pay rate per hour, multiplied by the number of hours worked.

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From the article:

"But under the current regulations, many working-class employees who earn above the low salary threshold are classified as “managers” and therefore don’t have overtime rights. Employers have an incentive to pile work onto these employees, since their extra time essentially comes for free. As a result, in retail some store managers will clock 60, 70 or even 80 hours, but only take home a modest salary in the $30,000 range."

So people who were getting paid above the 23k threshold did not qualify for overtime rights. Now that the threshold is increased to 44k, they do qualify for it. So it helps those who weren't already getting paid.

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It also incentivizes hiring more staff. It solves employment issues.

Sure there can be some hiccups here and there but I don't see how it's not a good thing overall 

 

[Eighteen 5,430]

this is a good policy in my opinion. the negative implications is a reflection of the corporate greed that is truly the scourge of capitalism. there should be supplemental policy to reinforce this one and hold these employers to treat people like people, to value their employees. workers of the world unite! to quote karl marx. LOL 

[Economy 52,842]

Here in Canada theres no threshold. You work overtime hours you get 50% more end of story regardless if your pay is high or low

 

But 44 hours is when they have to pay you overtime not 40

[Economy 52,842]

5 hours ago, LebaneseDude said:

This only affects SALARIED people who don't get paid overtime. 

I think you're perhaps confusing salary with wages?

Here's the difference:

The person receiving a salary is not paid a smaller amount for working fewer hours, nor is he paid more for working overtime.

Someone who is paid wages receives a pay rate per hour, multiplied by the number of hours worked.

------

From the article:

"But under the current regulations, many working-class employees who earn above the low salary threshold are classified as “managers” and therefore don’t have overtime rights. Employers have an incentive to pile work onto these employees, since their extra time essentially comes for free. As a result, in retail some store managers will clock 60, 70 or even 80 hours, but only take home a modest salary in the $30,000 range."

So people who were getting paid above the 23k threshold did not qualify for overtime rights. Now that the threshold is increased to 44k, they do qualify for it. So it helps those who weren't already getting paid.

-----

It also incentivizes hiring more staff. It solves employment issues.

Sure there can be some hiccups here and there but I don't see how it's not a good thing overall 

 

Its good more workers get higher pay

 

the only downside with more hiring for the same job is lower productivity

 

helps economy short term hiring more people to do same amount of work by lowering unenployment rate but lowers productivity.

 

And when economy reaches full productive capacity, to keep growing our standards of living we actually need people to get fired and do same work with less workers and have them be useful somewhere else

 

needing less people to farm and do minial tasks is the reason in post industrial revolution world we have so many people working in luxury industries like at restaurants, movie theatres, spas etc

 

Our resources and purchasing power could not have risen like this if people didnt get fired and found other work to be peoductive in

 

with fewer needed workers and higher productivity, you compete harder with other companies, lower prices, and people have more money to spend elsewhere and support more luxury industries