BATON ROUGE, LA (September 6, 2016) – The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI) sent a formal request to U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Thomas E. Perez today to ask the agency to delay implementation of the new federal overtime rule in the 22 Louisiana parishes declared a disaster in recent historic flooding. READ THE LETTER.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Labor finalized a rule to require salaried workers earning less than $47,476 to be eligible for overtime pay. The new regulation is scheduled to go into effect nationwide on December 1, 2016.
The rule applies to executive, administrative and professional workers in the private sector, non-profit organizations, academia and state and local government. Small businesses in particular will be affected by this rule because it takes away their ability to tailor benefit packages that fit the employee and employer best. The rule applies a one-size-fits-all approach to how business owners will have to deal with different employees who have different needs in the future. Now, employers will need to evaluate job descriptions and make adjustments to an employee’s hours and pay in order to comply with the new rules.
LABI President and CEO Stephen Waguespack stated, “Employers across Louisiana continue to face new regulations and mandates from Washington, D.C. with the latest example being the new overtime rule. The Department of Labor should suspend this new mandate on businesses trying to rebuild after these tragic floods. Our communities need employers to reinvest and rehire as soon as possible, and this new rule serves as an impediment to the recovery process. We need to be attracting investment to areas affected by flooding, not driving it away or increasing the costs of recovery.”
LABI is holding a seminar for employers, human resource managers, attorneys and others on Tuesday, September 20, 2016, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the LABI Conference Center in Baton Rouge to learn how to prepare for and comply with the new federal overtime rule. Attorneys who attend will be able to earn one hour of Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit. REGISTER ONLINE NOW.
Greg Guidry, a wage and hour labor attorney with Ogletree Deakins law firm in Lafayette will make the presentation and respond to employer questions. Guidry is licensed to practice in Louisiana and Texas and has successfully represented management across the country in labor and employment law, including advice, training, prevention tactics and litigation for more than 35 years.
Waguespack added: “This free seminar will provide employers with the information they need to stay in compliance. With a December 1st effective date, the new rule will soon have a broad-based impact on many small businesses, complicating recovery for employers affected by recent historic flooding.”
John Overton, owner of Turn Key Solutions LLC and Chair of LABI’s Small Business Council, stated that “This seminar will be especially helpful to small business owners who typically do not have an HR department to help them comply with federal regulations. This new federal rule directly impacts my company and our employees, and we need to understand our options.”
For additional event details, contact Renee Amar, Director of LABI's Small Business Council, at (225) 928-5388 or reneea@labi.org.