Seyfarth Synopsis: The United States Department of Labor (DOL) released its final overtime rule on Tuesday, September 24, 2019, increasing the minimum salary level for exempt status to $35,568 per year for a full-time employee under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) effective January 1, 2020. But California employers must meet higher minimum salary requirements and other nuances
Continue Reading Overtime! DOL Final Rule Adds More Eligible Receivers

By Tim Rusche, Jonathan Brophy and Jennifer Wiegley

It seems simple enough. You hire an employee as a manager, you call her a manager, you pay her like a manager – voila! You don’t have to pay overtime, right?  Not so fast.

Entrepreneurial lawyers and disgruntled employees frequently attack “exempt” classifications to recover overtime pay, missed rest break and meal period pay, and other penalties. To avoid being an easy target, it is critical that employers avoid common pitfalls (like reading this blog with less than rapt attention!) and take affirmative steps to protect the exemption.

The Test:

In addition to earning at least two times the minimum wage, generally speaking, the “executive exemption” requires employees to spend most (i.e., the majority) of their time on management tasks, to regularly exercise discretion and independent judgment, and to supervise at least two employees.  In addition, their recommendations for changes in employment status, like hiring and firing, must be given particular weight.

Common Pitfalls:

  1. Bigger Salaries Are Not Always Better.   Just because an employee receives a high salary does not make him or her exempt under California law.  Regardless of the size of salaries, employees still must meet the other requirements of the exemption.
  2. A Job Title By Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet.  If an employee is not  actually performing managerial or related duties more than 50% of the time or meeting the other requirements of the exemption, neither an impressive job title nor a detailed job description will save the exemption.
  3. To Deduct, Or Not To Deduct, That Is The Question.  Employers cannot deduct from exempt employees’ salaries for poor performance, lack of work, or some kinds of missed work days.  Employers must consider alternatives to salary deductions for disciplinary measures in order to protect the exemption.
  4. Give Them An Inch And They Will Take a Mile. While discretion is the better part of valor, and the exercise of discretion and independent judgment is an essential element of the exemption, unfettered discretion can actually hinder an exemption defense.  Employers must allow exempt employees to exercise discretion, but when exempt employees are free to work as they please with zero oversight, employers can face an uphill battle when employees argue that they used their discretion to perform mostly nonexempt duties.
  5. Lean Is Good But Too Skinny Is Dangerous. While all businesses strive to run efficiently, employers should provide exempt employees sufficient resources so that they are not compelled to spend most of their time performing nonexempt work.
  6. Independent Contractors May Not Fit the Bill. Exempt employees must supervise at two least other employees. The supervision of independent contractors or employees of contractors may be attacked as insufficient.
  7. Allow Exempt Employees To Rule The Roost.  Oftentimes employers vest hiring and firing decisions in their Human Resources or other departments, or high atop the chain of command.  If an exempt employee’s recommendations regarding hiring and firing or other changes in employment status are regularly ignored, the employee may not qualify for the executive exemption.

Workplace Solutions:  How can you protect executive exemption classifications?  Below are a few tips:
Continue Reading It’s Not ALL About the Benjamins – What Really Makes an Exempt Executive