Overtime pay is defined by the US Department of Labor (DOL) as being one and one-half times the current regular hourly pay for an employee.
Effective December 1, 2016 there are new rules for how eligibility for overtime pay is determined for US employees as announced in May 2016 by the US DOL.
Before explaining what the changes are, let me create a scenario that will help to bring the effects of the ruling to life.
Meet Jake...
Meet Jake, a husband and father. Jake is employed by XYZ LLC as a carpenter and furniture delivery supervisor. Jake often works 50 hours a week to complete his required building and supervisory duties. Because Jake is considered a part of the management team, he is not eligible for overtime per XYZ HR guidelines. Jake’s salary is $32,100 annually. No matter how many hours Jake works, his company is not obligated to extend overtime pay to him.
Until December 1, 2016 the annual earnings threshold for the overtime pay mandate is $23,660. What this means is that anyone that earns below $23,660 annually is required to be compensated with overtime pay regardless of their positon or title. Earning above this threshold takes an individual out of the mandated overtime pay as noted by the Department of Labor. It is also common for employees that are in managerial, administrative or professional roles to also be exempt or ineligible for overtime pay. Some employers have policies to also extend overtime pay to employees in these groups even though it is not mandated by the DOL.
The New Overtime Pay Rules
The new Department of Labor overtime pay rules will raise the overtime annual salary eligibility from $23,660 to $47,476. Under this new ruling that goes in effect December 1, 2016 Jake will be eligible for overtime pay (one plus one-half times regular pay) for any hours over 40 in one week. Jake becomes eligible for overtime since his annual salary is below the new $47,476 threshold. Jake and others like him will see additional money in their paycheck if they work beyond 40 hours in a single work week going forward.
There are employers that are increasing the salary base for some employees to exceed the $47,476 annual base so that the overtime pay exemption remains. Not a bad thing for employees that meet this criteria! In multiple ways, this ruling creates a potential for an increase to the household income for many US workers.
Three key points of the new Department of Labor Overtime Pay rules:
- Employees earning less than $47,476/year are eligible for overtime pay for work contributed beyond 40 hours in a single workweek. Overtime pay is equal to one and one-half times the current regular pay. The earnings threshold for this eligibility before this 2016 ruling is $23,660/year.
- The effective date for this change is December 1, 2016.
- The earnings threshold for overtime pay eligibility will increase automatically every three years. The next increase is planned for the year 2020.
Overtime Pay Oppositions
There have been oppositions raised to this overtime pay rule change by 21 of our 50 states. These states are suing the Obama administration for overstepping their bounds by imposing fiscal mandates at the state level that could affect their budgets. Those states are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin. I’m watching these activities and will report to you what comes of these efforts. I will also share more of my personal thouhts and views on this subject.
If you or someone that you know fits the profile of one that may be eligible for overtime pay as a result of this ruling, instruct them to seek information on this new DOL ruling and get information from their employer as needed. Direct any questions that you may have on the details of the ruling to me here as comments to this post. I'm here to assist!
Stay in the know!!
Charles, Major, Caldwell Jr., Wilbert, Melvin, and Oliver were born to Caldwell Sr. and Cecelia Jones, a farming family in the rural outskirts of McGehee. Each of the six made their mark on local basketball courts before all six went on to play college hoops for the same school-- Albany State College (later University) in Albany, Georgia. Caldwell Sr. and Cecelia had eight children in all including the oldest son Clint and the only daughter, Clovis.
Many of the records set by the Jones brothers at Albany State still stand today. Oliver became the first of the brothers to play for the Golden Rams in 1961. His brother Melvin joined him on the team in 1964. Oliver was drafted into the NBA where he played for three seasons before becoming the head coach at Albany State from 1972 until his retirement in 2000.
During his nearly thirty year college coaching career, Oliver coached his two youngest brothers, Major and Charles. In fact, a Jones brother either coached or played at Albany State for over 24 consecutive years.
While Oliver became the first brother to play ball professionally, the other brothers followed in his footsteps. Melvin played in the ABA for three seasons and Wilbert for nine seasons. Younger brother Caldwell played an impressive 17 seasons in both the ABA and NBA with teams that included the Philadelphia 76ers, the Houston Rockets, and the Chicago Bulls. Major played seven seasons professionally for the Houston Rockets and the Detroit Pistons after playing several seasons in Europe. Youngest brother Charles played for 17 seasons in the NBA with the 76ers, the Bulls, the Pistons, and the Houston Rockets, winning the NBA championship with the Rockets in 1995.
The contributions of the Jones brothers to the Albany State University basketball program were etched in history recently. In January, the University officially named the athletic complex the Jones Major, Charles, and Wilbert Jones are pictured above as the basketball court at Albany State University was named for their brother, the late Coach Oliver Jones recently. (Photos courtesy of the Jones Family) This sign marks the entrance to The Jones Brothers Health, Physical Education and Recreation Complex at Albany State University, named for the legendary Jones brothers of Wolfe Project. Brothers Health, Physical Education, and Recreation Complex. The basketball court is officially named for the late Coach Oliver Jones who passed away on December 31, 2019.
Surviving brothers Wilbert, Major, and Charles, along with many other members of the Jones family were on hand for the official dedication last month (January 2020).
Join me on Saturday 5/13/2017 at 9 AM CDT. I'll be in the studio with Ralph & Shelia Green, the dynamic hosts of 
Do you have a retirement savings account? Got a 401k or a 403b plan? What about a 457b plan, a Roth or traditional IRA?
All of these plans are created specifically to enable us to set aside money for our retirement while enjoying beneficial tax strategies. If you don't have a retirement savings plan I'd like to invite you to get in the game. You can't beat the results that are possible when you purposely set aside tax deferred funds for a time in the future while investing those funds to increase your returns. More about this to come!
To invest your retirement funds effectively, you will need to understand a few things about the options available to you in your savings plan. To get you started, I've created the 
JOIN ME! I'M APPEARING ON THE MARRIAGE TALK SHOW!
Your savings ratio or savings rate shows how much of your household income is redirected to savings. According the the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), April 2017 indicators report our US personal savings ratio at 5.60%. While this is slightly higher than in January 2017, we are still in a 5 year downward savings trend as also reported by the BEA.
How much of your income are you saving today? It's a simple calculation. Here's the formula:
When our financial markets go through periods of times when the trading prices of stocks are going up and down unpredictably, it is certain that a large number of individuals and institutions are buying and selling stocks in large volumes. If this goes on for many days (as it often does) we see the result of this high volume trading in the “up & down” prices of individual stocks and the overall financial market.
Volatility is defined as being likely to change in a very sudden or extreme way. Volatile markets are likely to have sharper up and down swings than what is considered normal.
I personally look at the closing numbers of the Dow, S&P and the NASDAQ to detect the effect of market swings. I consider a DOW closing price of at least 300 points higher or lower than the previous day as a pretty volatile day. Anything less than a 100 point DOW closing (higher or lower) for me is considered a calm or sideways market day. The market volatility is measured and reported by the CBOE Volatility Index or the VIX.
There are many theories and technical details associated with market volatility including beta, sigma and standard deviation. For our conversation here, these concepts are not important. What is important to know is that there is a single cause for volatility. That reason is uncertainty.
As we do after each presidential election, expect this. Don’t be alarmed or think that we’re in for an immediate financial apocalypse. The uncertainty that results from political party changes in the office of the US president always introduces a fair measure of market volatility. It is important to be aware of what’s going on and manage your investments in a way that minimizes your losses and harmonizes with your risk tolerance. Again, prepare for market volatility and be prepared to make the adjustments that you need to be able to rest well during times of high volatility.
Again, the sharp market swings are caused by investor uncertainty. Market volatility rarely means that things are in an unstoppable upward trend or that the stock market is crashing. Keep your head, be aware of what’s going on and work your plan!
If you don't have a plan for investing during volatile times put this on your "to-do" list. If you are needing to expand your knowledge in understanding and navigating the financial markets it is time to consider taking a class and/or hiring a financial professional for assistance. Because the Money reVerse vision is for financial self-empowerment you can find stock market investing as a part of Money reVerse University. 
View Previous Post in this Series
Learn More
The Money reVerse vision is that all Christians are outstanding financial mangers, debt free, cheerful givers, financially credible, property owners, savers, investors, high-wage earners, family supporters and legacy creators.
This is one of the classes that I will teach at the 2016 Octane Leadership Development Conference.
I’m joining a team of outstanding leaders and teachers and we’re excited to be your leadership coaching team! Each attendee will receive over 11 hours of rich and relevant leadership training with an emphasis on post-conference implementation. All of this is only $125!
I’m joining Ralph and Shelia Green as an in-studio guest on The Marriage Talk Show on Saturday October 29th 2016 and the poverty mindset will be the focus of our discussion. We’ll identify the characteristics of a poverty mindset and explain how this can lead to self-destructive financial behaviors. We’ll also detail biblical truths on the topic of poverty and the poor and share practical wisdom on how we all can ensure that we align to God’s word in this crucial area. You don’t want to miss this - it's gonna be rich!
I’d love to have you join us by tuning in to The Marriage Talk Show Saturday October 29th from 9 AM – 11 AM on the Fishbowl Radio Network. Call in and join the discussion at 214-717-4678. We’d love to hear your thoughts or have you say hi to us on the air!
The Marriage Talk Show is in the “Red” stream on the Fishbowl Radio Network.