NEW YORK CITY – Starting December 1, more people will start to be paid by the hour. That’s when new regulations governing overtime will take effect. The U.S. Department of Labor set the threshold under which non-hourly employers must pay overtime wages for hours worked more than 40 in any given week at $913 per week or $47,476 per year.

Now that many formerly salaried employees will be re-classified as hourly, Fast Company reports that employers will need to pay overtime for hours worked in excess of 40 per week. Businesses can either raise the pay rate for employees to that threshold or figure out the worker’s new hourly rate, based on 40 hours weekly at base pay and overtime wages for any hours over 40.

Here are a few suggestions to keep workers close to 40 hours weekly.:

• Clearly inform workers of the change in overtime policy
• Set up tracking for hours worked
• Talk about flexible hours
• Implement automation and streamlining where applicable
• Keep a close eye on meeting time
• Limit after-hours email checking/answering
• Spend more time planning what needs to be done

While the House passed a bill in September to delay the overtime regulations for six months, now that the election cycle is well underway, it’s highly unlikely that the Senate will approve a similar measure before December. NACS Supports H.R. 4773 and S. 2707—The Protecting American Workplace Advancement and Opportunity Act—which would scrap this new rule and require DOL to go back to the drawing board and draft a new rule paying more attention to the overall economic impact that change will have.

Read more on this issue and the NACS position.