U.S. Department of Labor updates exemption criteria for key employee categories, setting new salary thresholds effective July 2024.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced a final rule to Define and Delimit the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales, and Computer Employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

AGC of America recently urged the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division to abandon or at least postpone issuance of such a rule. The DOL last updated these regulations as recently as 2019, going into effect in 2020, which strongly suggests there is no need for urgency in issuing more changes.

Specifically, the final rule: 

• Increases the standard salary level and the total annual compensation requirement for highly compensated employees (HCE).
  • On July 1, 2024, the standard salary level will equal $844 per week (equivalent to $43,888 per year), and the HCE total annual compensation level will equal $132,964.
  • On January 1, 2025, the standard salary level will equal $1,128 per week (equivalent to $58,656 per year), and the HCE total annual compensation level will equal $151,164.
• Adopts a mechanism to update the earnings thresholds every three years.

The final rule will take effect on July 1, 2024.

Contact Claiborne Guy for more information.