New employee classification and overtime rules coming
By Staff : October 13th, 2016
On Dec. 1, new rules pertaining to employee classification and overtime will go into effect at the University. The U.S. Department of Labor announced new rules regarding overtime eligibility earlier this year. The new rules impact the way employers classify employees relative to the Fair Labor Standards Act — exempt or non-exempt — as well as the way overtime is managed for non-exempt staff.
The new rule increases the overtime eligibility threshold from $455 per week (annualized $23,660 per year) to $913 per week (annualized $ 47,476 per year). It also details approved exemptions for government, public sector and higher education employers, and it clarifies implementation requirements.
Members of the UT Human Resources, Payroll and Legal Affairs departments, along with the senior leadership team, have been working to understand the new rules and their impact on the University. The team is in close communication with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office and the Inter-University Council HR team (comprised of senior HR leaders from all Ohio public colleges and universities) to benchmark best practices across the state.
The HR team has been working with individual departments at the University to assess each employee’s status. Initial assessments have shown that about 90 percent of exempt employees reviewed will experience no change in status. HR is working with leadership in each department to determine what changes will need to be made to abide by the new rules. Communication with individual employees will follow.