DOL Issues Final Rule Increasing Salary Thresholds for Exempt Employees Under FLSA
On April 23, 2024, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) released a final rule that increased the salary thresholds for the executive, administrative, professional, and highly compensated employees exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The final rule, “Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales, and Computer Employees,” went into effect on July 1, 2024. The FLSA requires covered employers to pay employees a minimum wage and, for employees who work more than 40 hours in a week, overtime pay (at 1.5 times an employee’s regular rate). However, the minimum wage and overtime requirements do not apply to employees who meet the requirements of the executive, administrative, or professional exemptions. One of the requirements of these exemptions is a minimum weekly salary. The final rule raised the minimum weekly salary to qualify for the exemption from $684 per week ($35,568 per year) to $844 per week ($43,888 per year) and, effective January 1, 2025, to $1,128 per week ($58,656 per year). Additionally, the final rule raised the annual salary threshold for the exemption for highly compensated employees from $107,432 per year to $132,964 per year and, effective January 1, 2025, to $151,164 per year. The highly compensated employee exemption applies to certain highly compensated employees and combines an annual...