Emory will implement changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) this year, increasing the salary threshold for exemption from overtime salaries to $47,476 (previously $23,660) per year and making roughly 300 to 400 University employees eligible for overtime pay, according to Associate Vice President of Human Resources Theresa Milazzo.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) May 2016 revision will affect employees who hold staff, administrative faculty-equivalent and post-doc positions, according to Emory’s FLSA website. Employees who meet this threshold will become “non-exempt” and be paid bi-weekly based on hours worked rather than a predetermined salary, Milazzo said. They will be eligible for overtime pay, 1.5 times the rate of their normal pay, for every hour worked over 40 hours per week, according to the website.
The FLSA creates minimum wage, overtime pay and other employment standards for both government and private sector employees, according to its website. The act was last updated April 2004, when the DOL revised exemption status rules for “white collar” employees.
Milazzo estimates the FLSA changes will take place at Emory late November, a timeline that complies with the DOL’s decision to make this change effective nationally Dec. 1.
Currently, Emory Human Resources is developing the specifics of FLSA implementation, including the determination of which employees will be impacted, according to Emory’s FLSA website. Emory plans to notify employees whose status will be affected by the change, the website said.
Employees will track their hours by calling KRONOS, an automated phone system that records employees clocking in and out of work, Milazzo said. Non-exempt Emory employees already use this system, said Smith.
Emory Human Resources has not yet finalized all plans to implement FLSA updates because the necessary administrative changes and communications are complex, according to Emory’s FLSA website. Emory created focus groups from which it gathered feedback June and July of this year to determine the best way to implement the changes at Emory, said Milazzo. Director of Compensation Debra Smith said that Emory Human Resources will consider these factors when completing plans to implement the changes.
Emory currently has employees who hold the same position and work hours but are paid different salaries, Milazzo said. With this adjustment, their eligibility for overtime pay will be based on the amount of time they work rather than their salaries, which may vary because of experience and performance levels. These changes will also improve tracking the hours of employees who work at irregular times, including those who work with students and attend events outside of regular hours and those who travel or work with colleagues in foreign countries and need to make phone calls outside of normal hours, Milazzo said.
Read More
Trending
