Community Development Digest

'White Collar' Rule Nearing Finalization

The Department of Labor is moving closer to finalizing its so-called “White Collar” rule. The department on March 14 sent the final rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. Typically, OMB can take up to three months of review before the final rule is published. After publication, employers will have 60 days to comply with the rule. Under the Congressional Review Act, Congress can evaluate the rule before it goes into effect during those 60 days. Even though federal lawmakers have the option of voting on a resolution to nullify the rule, President Obama would most likely veto such a measure. The rule, which could dramatically expand the number of employees entitled to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), is strongly supported by advocates representing workers in the home healthcare sector and at long-term care facilities. DOL is proposing to increase the salary level at which executive, professional, and administrative employees must be paid to qualify as exempt from FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime provisions under the so-called “white collar exemptions.” The proposed change would also affect the salary level applicable to computer employees. Under the final rule, in order to be exempt under FLSA’s white collar exemptions, employees would have to be paid a salary equal to the 40th percentile of weekly earnings of full-time salaried workers, as determined annually by the DOL’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. Based on 2013 BLS data, the DOL’s proposed...