On September 8, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to increase the minimum salary level for the Fair Labor Standards Act “white collar” exemptions from $684 to $1,059 per week (or from $35,568 per year to $55,068 per year) [88 F.R. 62152, 9-8-23]. The DOL announced it would publish the NPRM on August 30.
In addition to increasing the minimum salary level to $1,059 a week, the proposed rule would do the following:
- Increase the salary requirement for highly compensated employees (HCEs) from $107,432 to $143,988 per year
- Return the salary level in the four U.S. territories subject to the federal minimum wage – Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) – to apply the same standard salary level as the rest of the United States
- Update the special salary levels for American Samoa to $890 per week
- Automatically update the standard salary level and the HCE total annual compensation threshold every three years
Comment Period Open Until November 7
Comments should be submitted in writing on or before November 7, 2023, and should include a reference to RIN 1235-AA39. Comments may be submitted electronically via the Federal eRulemaking Portal or sent to: Division of Regulations, Legislation, and Interpretation, Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Department of Labor, Room S-3502, 200 Constitution Avenue N.W., Washington, DC 20210.
To learn more about federal and state laws, regulations, and information to keep your company’s payroll operations in compliance, check out Payroll Source Plus!
Jyme Mariani, Esq., is Managing Editor of Payroll Currently and Senior Manager of Payroll Information Resources for PayrollOrg.
