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Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

What is the difference between “exempt” and “non-exempt”?

The qualifications of exempt and non-exempt are regulated by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It is up to employers to determine whether to classify an employee as exempt or non-exempt under the FLSA. Exempt and nonexempt status has nothing to do with job titles and whether an employee is salaried or receives an hourly wage. The legal definition of “exempt” and “nonexempt” has much more to do with an employee’s level of responsibility or his or her status as a professional.

Non-exempt: Employees are subject to overtime and time-keeping requirements. This means you must track the hours they’ve worked each week and pay them additional overtime compensation if they work more than 40 hours in a workweek.

Exempt: You are not required to maintain time records for exempt employees as they are paid on a “salary basis” and are not eligible for overtime. This means they are paid a specific amount of money for a specific job, regardless of the number of hours worked during each workweek. The salary cannot be reduced other than under very limited circumstances. To be an exempt employee the employee’s position must qualify for one of the following exemptions.

The Human Resource team at the Iowa Bankers Association will complete a wage and hour audit to ensure you are in compliance with the FLSA.

Do mortgage lenders meet the requirements to be “exempt”?

No. The Department of Labor (DOL) issued an Administrator’s Interpretation on March 24, 2010, stating that employees who perform the typical job duties of a mortgage loan officer as outlined in the Administrator’s Interpretation do not qualify under the administrative exemption category. There are other exemption categories, however, it is unlikely that a mortgage lender would meet the requirements of any other category, with possible exception to the “outside sales” category.

To read the Administrator’s Interpretation, click here.

What do I need to know about the proposed FLSA changes (initially supposed to be effective January 1, 2020)?

The final rule focuses primarily on updating the salary and compensation levels needed for Executive, Administrative and Professional workers to be exempt.

Fact Sheet #17A: Exemption for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Computer & Outside Sales Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

The IBA Human Resource team will complete a wage and hour audit to ensure you are in compliance with the FLSA.

For additional information, contact Teresa Osborn at (515) 286-4312.