Last week, the federal Department of Labor ("DOL") announced its long-awaited final rule
increasing the minimum salary requirements for certain exempt
workers. The DOL announced its final rule on May 18, 2016, and the
rule will go into effect on December 1, 2016. A helpful fact sheet
for private employers, published by the DOL, is available here.
At its core, this new rule will affect employees and employers
as follows:
- The minimum weekly salary for an exempt Executive,
Administrative, Professional, or salaried Computer Employee
(e.g., software engineers) will increase from $455 to $913
per week ($47,476 annually, up from $23,660). Prior to the new
rule, employers in California were already required to pay such
exempt workers (except for Computer Employees, as discussed below)
at least $41,600 annually; this minimum is no longer lawful and
California employees will be subject to the new federal minimum.
Further, software engineers and others who fall
