As the Department of Labor contemplates a new overtime rulemaking, four senior Republican members of Congress last week urged DOL to “conduct robust public engagement,” including meetings with industry stakeholders, before any proposed rule relating to overtime pay requirements. The request comes after the American Bankers Association and 109 other trade groups sent a letter on Jan. 25 urging the DOL to meet with industry groups before proposing a new rule.
The Biden administration’s fall 2021 regulatory agenda projected that DOL would issue a proposed rule in April 2022 that would revisit the salary level at which an employee could be exempted from federal overtime and minimum wage requirements, as well as revisit other aspects of the overtime regulatory regime. In 2019, with ABA’s support, DOL under the Trump administration issued a final rule that set the salary level at $684 per week, or $35,568 per year.
“It is clear that the regulated community is interested in engaging with DOL regarding its plan to develop new overtimes regulations,” said the congressional members. “We respectfully ask that you grant the request as doing so is both fair and prudent.”