The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal law that was first enacted in 1938 to protect the rights of employees, particularly in regards to fair pay practices. The law establishes minimum wage, overtime premium pay for hours worked beyond 40 per week, and recordkeeping requirements. Each employee is either non-exempt (covered and eligible for overtime) under FLSA or is exempt from the act based on the responsibilities of their position and their total salary. For a position to be exempt from the act, it must meet one of five exemption (“duties”) tests:
For more information concerning these exemptions, please visit The United States Department of Labor web site.
If a position does not meet any of these exemptions, it is then considered to be non-exempt under FLSA and subject to the pay practices outlined in the act. Any employee who earns less than a minimum salary rate established by the Department of Labor is automatically non-exempt under FLSA regardless of classification title or duties. The minimum salary rate is $684/week ($35,568/year). The salary test does not allow the university to prorate the salary based on percent of time. It is a fixed amount that is not subject to review. If an employee has multiple salaried appointments that are individually exempt based on job responsibilities, the salaries are combined to determine whether or not the salary threshold is met.
If you have any questions or comments concerning the FLSA status of a position or classification, please contact your Human Resources representative.