The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal law that establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, and other labor standards for workers in the United States. The FLSA also includes rules regarding the classification of employees as "exempt" or "non-exempt" from the law's overtime pay provisions.
Exempt employees are those who are not entitled to overtime pay for any hours worked over 40 hours in a workweek. Non-exempt employees, on the other hand, are entitled to overtime pay at a rate of one and one-half times their regular pay for any hours worked over 40 hours in a workweek.
The FLSA provides several categories of exemptions for certain types of employees. The most commonly used exemptions are the executive, administrative, and professional exemptions. To qualify for one of these exemptions, an employee must meet certain criteria:
Executive exemption: To qualify for the executive exemption, an employee must:
- Be paid on a salary basis (i.e., a predetermined amount of pay that is not subject to reduction based on the quality or quantity of work performed);
- Have a primary duty of managing the enterprise, or managing a customarily recognized department or subdivision of the enterprise;
- Customarily and regularly direct the work of at least two other full-time employees; and
- Have the authority to hire or fire other employees, or their suggestions and recommendations as to the hiring, firing, advancement, promotion or any other change of status of other employees are given particular weight.
Administrative exemption: To qualify for the administrative exemption, an employee must:
- Be paid on a salary basis;
- Have a primary duty of performing office or non-manual work directly related to the management or general business operations of the employer or the employer's customers;
- Exercise discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance.
Professional exemption: To qualify for the professional exemption, an employee must:
- Be paid on a salary basis;
- Have a primary duty of performing work that requires advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction;
- The advanced knowledge must be in a field of science or learning and must be customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction; and
- The advanced knowledge must be used in the performance of a job that requires consistent exercise of discretion and judgment.
It is important to note that an employee's job title or job description alone does not determine whether the employee is exempt or non-exempt. Rather, it is the employee's actual job duties and responsibilities that determine whether he or she qualifies for one of the FLSA's exemptions.
In conclusion, the FLSA establishes minimum wage and overtime pay standards for workers in the United States, and includes rules regarding the classification of employees as exempt or non-exempt. To qualify for one of the FLSA's exemptions, an employee must meet certain criteria related to job duties, responsibilities, and compensation.