The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), which represents the Congressional Progressive Caucus, urged President Joe Biden Tuesday to extend his streakThis is Executive actions of major importanceThe overtime threshold was greatly increased, making overtime pay more accessible to millions of workers in the U.S.
CPC Chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) issued a statementBiden and his Department of Labor (DOL), are urging overtime salaries to be raised ahead of Labor Day meager $35,568To the full-time salaried salary of the 55th per centile, or about$83,000 by 2026
This would allow millions of workers to have overtime protections under Fair Labor Standards Act. The Fair Labor Standards Act mandates that workers earning less than the threshold earn time and a half for hours worked beyond 40 hours per week.
“The current level of the federal guarantee for overtime pay is so low that it covers only about 15 percent of full-time salaried workers — forcing millions to essentially work any hours above 40 per week for free, at a time when they cannot afford to do so,” Jayapal said.
She said that, while steps like Biden’s plan to Up to $20,000 per borrower in student loans can be canceledWorkers and their families will receive much-needed relief. Americans still need relief during times of high unemployment. profit-driven inflationEconomic instability.
To update the overtime threshold to match 55th percentile salaried earners progressives say the Biden administration has the authority to do, could “give millions of people a raise,” Jayapal said.
Progressives have asked Biden repeatedly to update the salary threshold, subject it to automatic annual updating, and send them an email. several lettersMarty Walsh, Labor Secretary about the proposal. the caucus’s executive agendaIt was released earlier in the year.
The threshold has remained the exact same since it was established by the Trump administration in 2019. This was after President Barack Obama had made the move. had attempted to doubleThe $23,000 limit for 2013, which would have raised it to $47,000, and tied it to the cost-of-living, was set at $23,000 in 2013. This would have been more in line with the historical levels for the overtime guideline. $5,200 salary limitFor instance, the 1949 equivalent of $65,000 is today.
Obama’s attempt to increase the limit was blocked by a Republican lawsuit in 2017 after Donald Trump took office. Trump’s DOL then implemented a much weaker threshold that doesn’t adjust with the cost of living, which is still in place today.
That threshold was implemented in response to backlash against Obama’s attempt to raise the limit from corporate lobbyists, who threatened that employers would force workers to lose wages and benefits under Obama’s rule.
“Overtime standards were created to prevent workers from being forced to work excessive hours without additional compensation and to incentivize employers to hire additional employees rather than overworking current ones,” a group of 22 Democrats, including Jayapal, wrote to WalshIn June. “Millions upon millions of workers were left behind under the Trump DOL rule, resulting in a loss of both protections and wages — wages that could have been taken home to families and put food on the table.”
Last summer, Walsh said that the limit is “definitely” too low and that the agency is reviewing the rule, but it has not yet released any new guidance.
