[Publib] MW Aspects

[Backwage at aol.com]

One thing to think about in the wake of today's minimum wage increase is  the 
effect it will have on another aspect of pay--overtime and exemptions.  
 
Many workers will see their pay bumped upward even if they were not below  
the new minimum wage, because workers at or below that figure had their pay  
increased.  A tip here for the worker:  if your pay goes up, there is  a good 
probability that you are not actually exempt from overtime, even  if you are paid 
on a salary basis.  It may be, and often is, that your  salary is merely a 
conversion from an hourly rate--the rise along with the  minimum wage will help 
confirm this.  If this is the case, and if you are  not paid for hours over 
forty in the week, contact the U.S. Department of Labor  for advice.
 
For that matter, if you do not supervise two or more people for the  majority 
of your time, you might also be eligible for overtime.  And  remember, your 
overtime status can change from week to week--it is dependent  upon actual 
duties, not job titles, and certainly not on what the personnel  office tells you. 
 The example I like to use is that of a librarian  who is between a higher 
and a lower class of librarians, both of whom are  actually exempt from 
overtime, while she, in the middle, is not.  
 
Why this is important:  because you might not be legally exempt, but  that if 
not, you might as well have the employer raise your salary for the  privilege 
of depriving you of overtime pay.  This profession is poorly  compensated as 
is, without being gouged for extra hours.  
 
M. McGrorty



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