Nathan Oleson Quoted in Society for Human Resource Management on New Overtime Pay Rules

The Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) quoted Akin Gump labor and employment partner Nathan Oleson in the article “Overtime Pay Changes Will Affect Employee Benefits, Too,” regarding the Department of Labor’s final rule revising the Fair Labor Standards Act overtime regulations, which will significantly alter employee pay structures.

The article reports that one component of the final rule, which goes into effect December 1, raises the annual salary threshold for exempt positions to $47,476.  That figure will be updated every three years. Additionally, according to the article, even if newly nonexempt workers are treated as salaried—but precluded from working over 40 hours per week so as to avoid overtime—employers will now be responsible for tracking their hours.

Oleson said, “Employers, especially those that operate outside the high cost-of-living areas in the Northeast and the West Coast, will need to overhaul the compensation system for a significant portion of their white-collar workforce.” He added that they will also have to change the culture for employees “who have never been required to record their time and are used to working until the job gets done.”

In a separate article from SHRM, “Newly Nonexempt May Embrace Overtime Rule,” Oleson, speaking about the policy change that will have some salaried professionals classified as nonexempt and eligible for overtime, said, “Some will see it as a demotion, while others will see it as a windfall.”