WASHINGTON D.C. -- The Biden administration on Tuesday announced a rule that expands overtime protections for millions of American workers.
The rule increases the minimum salary threshold from $35,568 to $43,888, effective July 1. Therefore, employees who earn an annual salary of $43,888 or less will earn mandatory overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours in a week.
The threshold will again increase to $58,656 on Jan. 1, 2025 – a move that will extend overtime pay to about 4 million American workers, the Department of Labor estimates.
Going forward, minimum salary thresholds will increase every three years, beginning July 1, 2027.
DOL said it conducted “extensive engagement” with employers, employees, unions and more before issuing its overtime rule proposal in September 2023. The department considered more than 33,000 comments in developing its final rule issued Tuesday.
“This rule will restore the promise to workers that if you work more than 40 hours in a week, you should be paid more for that time,” Acting DOL Secretary Julie Su said in a news release. “Too often, lower-paid salaried workers are doing the same job as their hourly counterparts but are spending more time away from their families for no additional pay. That is unacceptable. The Biden-Harris administration is following through on our promise to raise the bar for workers who help lay the foundation for our economic prosperity.”
