Overtime rules could benefit 6 million workers

(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

The U.S. Department of Labor is planning on amending the Fair Labor Standards Act so that more workers will be eligible for mandatory time-and-a-half pay for overtime hours. And, not surprisingly, according to a new report by the Economic Policy Institute, women and minorities will benefit much more from such a change than white males.

The study looked at what it would mean to double the existing threshold pay level that triggers the overtime pay. A threshold for professional overtime hours was set in 1975 at $455 per week so that professionals who were well paid at the time wouldn’t have to be paid extra, while those who could be seen as a financial disadvantage compared to other managers/professionals would be protected from abuse. The threshold has not been increased since 1975, and the likelihood is that it will increase to $1,000 a week or more.