Are You Employed in Retail? The Administration is Threatening Your Overtime Pay

Recently, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a final rule that would seek to deprive large numbers of employees overtime wages. The Administration’s action eliminates helpful guidance about the types of employees who are not considered to work in “retail” and would presumably be entitled to overtime under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Employees considered “exempt” from the FLSA do not benefit from its minimum wage and overtime pay requirements. Exempt workers usually include executive, administrative, or professional employees who meet the tests—including the salary-based test—for the exemption. “Retail” workers may also be considered exempt and be paid on a commission-only basis. For nearly 60 years, the DOL had a list of industries presumably excluded from “retail” as having no “retail concept” – like banking. The Administration’s action would seek to short-change these hundreds of thousands or millions of workers of their overtime.

More specifically, pursuant to Section 7(i) of the FLSA, certain employees paid primarily on commission in the retail and service industries have long been considered exempt from overtime benefits. To qualify for this exemption, the employee must have been employed by a “retail or service establishment,” which the DOL consistently interpreted as an establishment with a “retail concept.” Such establishments typically “sell[] goods or services to the general public,” “serve[] the everyday needs of the community,” “[are] at the very end of the stream of distribution,” dispose their products and skills “in small quantities,” and “do[] not take part in the manufacturing process.” Implementing this interpretation, the DOL maintained lists of establishments that could not claim the overtime exemption: (1) those that the DOL viewed as having “no retail concept” and were always ineligible to claim the exemption (such as banks, certain dry cleaners, tax preparers, laundries, roofing companies, and travel agencies), and (2) those that “may be recognized as retail” but were potentially ineligible for the exemption on a case-by-case basis (such as auto repair shops, hotels, barber shops, scalp-treatment establishments, taxidermists, and crematoriums).

The DOL’s new rule eliminates these lists that provided helpful guidance for more than half a century of what types of establishments could claim the overtime exemption. Employers that previously fit into these categories may now try to assert that they have a retail concept and may qualify for the overtime exemption.  According to the Administration, this rule provides greater simplicity and flexibility to retail industry employers because the DOL will now apply the same “retail concept” analysis to all businesses. 

We disagree. This rule may be used by employers to attempt to justify paying their workers on commission without overtime, which means employees working longer hours with less pay. Retail workers already have a low median annual income of about $29,000 according the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and are subject to wage and hour abuses. The new rule simply adds confusion around long-standing FLSA guidance for employers and employees about who can and cannot qualify for overtime provisions. The DOL made this decision without a notice and comment period, stating that no such period is required since both lists were interpretive regulations originally issued without notice and comment in 1961. Some attorneys question the propriety of the DOL’s decision. 

Courts may disregard this rule change. The DOL’s interpretations and lists are not binding on courts but can serve as guidance and, in the past, have been afforded some deference. However, when the Administration casts aside tried-and-true guidance to support the political agenda of the moment, seemingly without undergoing any rigorous process or study, such a move will be entitled to no deference under Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Association. 135 S.Ct. 1199, 1208 n.4 (2015) (highlighting that an agency’s interpretation that conflicts with a prior interpretation of a regulation is entitled to considerably less deference than a consistently held agency view). Workers’ rights advocates anticipate that when the Administration changes – hopefully soon – helpful guidance will be restored distinguishing true retail from many other industries that would opportunistically try to claim an exemption where none should exist.

Bryan Schwartz Law has written about the Trump Administration’s antipathy toward workers, DOL shifts, and overtime before and remains committed to protecting workers’ wages. If you were denied overtime pay you believe you were owed, contact Bryan Schwartz Law today.

New (Watered-Down) Overtime Pay Rule Announced By Department of Labor

This week, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a final rule that starting January 1, 2020, 1.3 million more American workers will be eligible for overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The final rule expands the definition of who “non-exempt” workers are, i.e. workers who are subject to minimum wage and overtime pay requirements. “Exempt” workers are exempt from minimum wage and overtime pay requirements. Exempt workers include, for example, those meeting the tests (including the salary-basis test) for the white-collar exemptions as executive, administrative, or professional employees.

The rule is a watered-down version of an Obama Administration proposal, which would have expanded overtime pay to around 4 million workers by raising the maximum salary for which non-exempt workers are entitled to overtime pay to $47,000 a year for full-time work, a highly-compensated employee (“HCE”) exemption level of $147,000, and (perhaps most importantly) tying future increases to the cost of living. That proposal was met by fierce opposition from various business groups, who teamed up with some Republican-controlled states to take the Obama Administration to court, resulting in the rule being blocked by a conservative federal judge in 2017.

Here are the main changes the new rule makes:

·         raises the “standard salary level” to qualify for a white-collar exemption from the current level of $455 per week (equivalent to $23,660 per year for a full-year worker) to $684 per week (equivalent to $35,568 per year for a full-year worker);

·         raises the total annual compensation level for “HCEs from the current level of $100,000 to $107,432 per year;

·         allows employers to use nondiscretionary bonuses and incentive payments (including commissions) that are paid at least annually to satisfy up to 10 percent of the standard salary level; and

·         revises the special salary levels for workers in U.S. territories and in the motion picture industry.

What the new rule does not do is tie the standard salary level to the rate of inflation. Adjusted for inflation, the $23,660/year would rise to a current minimum salary level for non-exempt status of $55,000/year. By also allowing employers to take nondiscretionary bonuses and commissions into account in determining how much employees make and therefore if they’re eligible for overtime pay, the rule immediately undercuts the impact of the relatively small increase provided to the standard salary level. That 10% caveat creates room for confusion and discretion on the part of employers that could adversely affect the very workers the rule is supposedly designed to help. The $107,432/year level for HCEs is also laughably low for many parts of the country where such a salary is much closer to the average.

After 15 years of no updates to overtime pay eligibility, any update is welcome. But once again, the Trump Administration does far less than is needed (and far less than was approved by the prior Administration) to help vulnerable workers. The bottom line: If you make less than $35,568 a year for full-time work, starting next year, you’re more likely to be entitled to overtime pay. But, your employer can count up to 10% of your earnings from things like bonuses and commissions to determine if you qualify for overtime. Note that this new rule doesn’t affect the “outside sales exemption.”

Bryan Schwartz Law has written about overtime issues before here. If you believe you were denied overtime pay you were owed, contact Bryan Schwartz Law today.

The Supreme Court Denies Certiorari of Ninth Circuit Ruling that Mortgage Underwriters are Non-Exempt Employees

Today, the Supreme Court of the United States summarily denied certiorari to an appeal from a recent Ninth Circuit decision, McKeen-Chaplin v. Provident Savings Bank, 862 F.3d 847 (9th Cir. Jul. 5, 2017), which held that mortgage underwriters did not qualify as exempt from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The Ninth Circuit’s ruling in McKeen-Chaplin, clarifies the legal analysis for evaluating whether an employer has met the second prong of the administrative-exemption test. The administrative-exemption test requires administrative employees to have as their primary duty “the performance of office or non-manual work related to the management or general operations of the employer or the employer’s customers.” 29 C.F.R. § 541.200. Notably, the Ninth Circuit utilized the “administrative / production dichotomy” to determine whether the employer met the second prong of the FLSA’s administrative exemption. Under the administrative / production dichotomy framework, “whether [an employee’s] primary duty goes to the heart of internal administration—rather than marketplace offerings” is the crucial test. Thus, if an employee’s duties focus on the core business of a company, e.g., an underwriter working on a bank’s mortgage products, then the employee is not administratively exempt, and is entitled to overtime. Bryan Schwartz Law previously blogged about McKeen-Chaplin here.

In arriving at its decision, the Ninth Circuit relied heavily upon reasoning in Davis. v. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., 587 F.3d 529 (2nd Cir. 2009) cert. denied sub nom., a Second Circuit ruling which applied the administrative-production dichotomy to find mortgage loan underwriters were production employees. Bryan Schwartz Law previously blogged about Davis, here.

Employees who produce a company’s core products or services, as opposed to performing “work related to the management or general operations of the employer,” should not be denied overtime based on the FLSA’s administrative exemption.

If you believe your employer has incorrectly classified you as an exempt administrative employee and deprived you of overtime pay even though you produce the core goods or services of your employer, then please contact Bryan Schwartz Law.

Ninth Circuit Holds Mortgage Underwriters are Entitled to Overtime Under the Fair Labor Standards Act

Today, the Ninth Circuit held in McKeen-Chaplin v. Provident Savings Bank that mortgage underwriters are entitled to overtime compensation under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The McKeen-Chaplin opinion clarifies the legal analysis for evaluating whether an employer has met the second prong of the administrative exemption test under the FLSA by strongly endorsing the “administrative-production dichotomy.”[1] McKeen-Chaplin, No. 15-16758, 2017 WL 2855084, at *7 (9th Cir. July 5, 2017) (“McKeen-Chaplin”). Under the administrative-production dichotomy framework, “whether [an employee’s] primary duty goes to the heart of internal administration—rather than marketplace offerings” is the key test in determining whether an employer has met the second prong of the FLSA’s administrative exemption. Based upon this important precedent, generally speaking, if an employee’s duties are focused on the core business of a company – like underwriters, working on a bank’s mortgage products – then the employee is not administratively exempt, and is entitled to overtime.

All employees are guaranteed minimum and overtime compensation under the FLSA unless their job duties fall under a specific exemption, such as the administrative exemption. McKeen-Chaplin, at *2. The burden is on the employer to show that a particular exemption defense “plainly and unmistakably” applies to a particular job position. Id. For the administrative exemption to apply, an employee must:

(1) be compensated not less than $455 per week;

(2) perform as her primary duty office or non-manual work related to the management or general business operations of the employer or the employer’s customers; and

(3) have as her primary duty the exercise of discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance.

McKeen-Chaplin, at *3. An employer must completely satisfy all three prongs of this test for the administrative exemption to apply (i.e., for an employer to avoid paying overtime and minimum wage compensation by claiming the administrative exemption applies to its workers). Id.

In McKeen-Chaplin, the Ninth Circuit held that mortgage underwriters are entitled to overtime under the FLSA. In so holding, the Court summarized the operative facts as follows:

Provident’s mortgage underwriters do not decide if Provident should take on risk, but instead assess whether, given the guidelines provided to them from above, the particular loan at issue falls within the range of risk Provident has determined it is willing to take. Assessing the loan’s riskiness according to relevant guidelines is quite distinct from assessing or determining Provident’s business interests. Mortgage underwriters are told what is in Provident’s best interest, and then asked to ensure that the product being sold fits within criteria set by others.

Id. at *4.

In other words, because mortgage underwriters follow their employer’s policies to produce their employer’s products and do not set the employer’s policies or determine their employer’s business objectives, the employer failed to meet the second prong of the three-part administrative exemption test. Because the employer failed to meet all three prongs of the administrative exemption test, and no other exemption applied, the Ninth Circuit held that mortgage underwriters are entitled to overtime compensation.

The Ninth Circuit rejected the lower court’s reasoning that mortgage underwriters performed “quality control” work as a basis to assert that they engaged in work directly related to the company’s management or general business operations. Id. at **6-7. The Ninth Circuit noted, as a factual matter, that the employer maintains a separate, multi-step quality control process which “is not staffed by mortgage underwriters.” Id. at *6.

To drive home the point that merely because a “role bears a resemblance to quality control” does not make such a position exempt from overtime/minimum wage protections, the Ninth Circuit analogized the duties of mortgage underwriters to the undisputedly non-exempt “assembly line worker who checks whether a particular part was assembled properly.” Id. at *7. Even though an assembly line worker inspects a widget on the assembly line to ensure it meets the standards of the employer, the assembly line worker – like the underwriters in McKeen-Chaplin - nevertheless is bound by the product quality standards set by the employer.

Unless employees’ job duties “plainly and unmistakably” make them “administrators or corporate executives” responsible for the employer’s “internal administration,” employers may not avoid paying overtime by classifying them as exempt using the administrative exemption. Id. at **2, 7.

***

If you have concerns that you may have been incorrectly classified as an exempt employee and deprived of overtime pay, then please contact Bryan Schwartz Law.

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[1] The Ninth Circuit was careful to acknowledge that “the [administrative-production] dichotomy is only determinative if the work falls squarely on the production side of the line.” McKeen-Chaplin, at * 4 (citing 69 Fed. Reg. 22122, 22141 (Apr. 23, 2004).

In addition, because the Ninth Circuit decided this case solely with respect to the second prong of the administrative exemption test, it did not need to address prong (3), i.e., whether mortgage underwriters have as their primary duty the exercise of discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance. McKeen-Chaplin, at *1 n. 1.

The Fate of the Department of Labor's New Overtime Rule is in Limbo, and its Prospects are Dim

Recent developments in the judicial and executive branches of the federal government make it unlikely that a key effort by the Obama Administration to raise the wages of American workers will come to fruition. 

            I.                   Overtime Final Rule

Earlier this year, the Department of Labor announced a new rule which would have increased the salary threshold for the executive, administrative, and professional exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The rule was expected to extend the FLSA’s overtime protections to an estimated 4.2 million additional white-collar employees around the country, including managers in the restaurant, retail, and hospitality industries. (Bryan Schwartz Law wrote about the overtime final rule announcement here). The overtime final rule was anticipated to go into effect on December 1, 2016. 

The final rule would:

• increase the salary level required for the white collar exemptions to apply, from $23,660 to $47,476;
• increase the compensation level required for the highly compensated employee exemption to apply, from $100,000 to $134,004; and,
• provide automatic increases to these salary levels every three years based on data reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, without requiring a separate rulemaking. 

II.                Final Rule Imperiled by the Courts

On November 22, 2016, U.S. District Court Judge Amos Mazzant granted an emergency motion to preliminarily enjoin the Department of Labor from implementing and enforcing the overtime final rule. Nevada, et al. v. U.S. Dept. of Labor, et al., No: 4:16-CV-00731, Docket No. 60 (E.D. Tex). The court applied the analytical framework set forth in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. National Resources Defense Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837 (1984), to conclude that the Department of Labor’s interpretation of the FLSA’s white collar exemptions, set forth in 29 U.S.C. § 213(a)(1), was not entitled to deference, and was contrary to the language and intent of the statute.

Courts apply a two-step analytical framework to determine whether an agency's interpretation of a statue is entitled to judicial deference. First, the court determines “whether Congress has directly spoken to the precise question at issue.” Id. at 842. “If the intent of Congress is clear, that is the end of the matter; for the court, as well as the agency, must give effect to the unambiguously expressed intent of Congress.” Id. at 842-43. Second, if Congress’s intent is ambiguous regarding the precise question at issue, then the court will defer to the agency’s interpretation unless it is “arbitrary, capricious, or manifestly contrary to the statute.” Id. at 844.

In Nevada, the court concluded that the final rule was not entitled to Chevron deference. At the first step of analysis, the court interpreted the language of the FLSA's white collar exemptions as describing employee job duties, not employee salaries. Slip. Op. at 11. The Department of Labor added regulations shortly after the FLSA was enacted in 1938 which added salary basis and minimum salary requirements. The court concluded that by significantly raising the salary level required for the white collar exemption to apply, the Department of Labor exceeded its delegated authority because it allowed minimum salary level to supplant the duties test. Slip. Op. at 13.

The court went on to explain that the final rule would also fail at the second stage of the Chevron analysis, because it was not “based on a permissible construction of the statute. Id. (quoting Chevron, 467 U.S. at 843). The court interpreted the final rule as creating a de facto salary-only test. The court concluded that by doing so, the final rule was “contrary to the statutory text and Congress’s intent,” and not entitled to deference on that basis. Slip. Op. at 14.

In a statement released on the agency’s website, the Department of Labor states that it “strongly disagrees with the decision by the court,” explaining that, 

Since 1940, the Department's regulations have generally required each of three tests to be met for the FLSA's executive, administrative, and professional (EAP) exemption to apply: (1) the employee must be paid a predetermined and fixed salary that is not subject to reduction because of variations in the quality or quantity of work performed (“salary basis test”); (2) the amount of salary paid must meet a minimum specified amount (“salary level test”); and (3) the employee's job duties must primarily involve executive, administrative, or professional duties as defined by the regulations (“duties test”). The Department has always recognized that the salary level test works in tandem with the duties tests to identify bona fide EAP employees. The Department has updated the salary level requirements seven times since 1938.

III.             Final Rule Imperiled by the President-Elect

The overtime final rule is likely to die during the presidency of Donald Trump.

On December 1, 2016, the Department of Labor filed a notice of appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals – home of some of the most conservative appeals judges in the country. Given the high stakes of this case, the non-prevailing party on appeal will probably seek certiorari before a Supreme Court containing one or more nominee selected by president-elect Trump. If Trump’s selection for the Supreme Court is anything like his recent pick to head the Department of Labor, the High Court will have an additional vote in support of the district court’s ruling.

On December 8, 2016, President-elect Trump named Andy Puzder, a fast-food executive, as his pick to head the Department of Labor. Mr. Puzder is vocal opponent of recent efforts to raise the minimum wage, and government regulation of the workplace generally. In a May 18, 2016 Forbes Op-Ed, Mr. Puzder criticized the overtime final rule as “another barrier to the middle class, rather than a springboard.” If confirmed, Mr. Puzder can be expected to impose additional barriers to implementation of the overtime final rule.

In an economy where middle-class workers’ wages have stagnated, President Obama's Administration sought to lift white-collar wages through the overtime final rule. The court’s wrong decision, and president-elect Trump’s signaled direction, will allow the wealthy few to continue to pocket the economy’s profits while middle-class workers watch their standards of living decline. This is an existing trend that will likely grow throughout the Trump presidency. For the next four years, at least, the movement to raise minimum wages should not expect gains at the federal level. In the meantime, the movement should continue to seek victories where possible – on the state and local levels.  

IV.       Possible Silver Lining? Some Employers May be Contractually Obligated to Raise Wages

Because the preliminary injunction issued just one week before the overtime final rule was supposed to take effect, by that time, many employers may have taken steps toward raising their employees’ wages. Even without the rule, some employers may already have contractually obligated themselves to raise their employees’ wages.