Today Obama ordered rule changes to overtime pay. Millions of workers will be eligible for extra pay
Obama Orders Rule Changes to Expand Overtime Pay
By DAVID S. JOACHIMMARCH 13, 2014
WASHINGTON President Obama, declaring that Americans have spent too long working more and getting less in return, ordered the Labor Department on Thursday to revise federal rules on overtime pay to make millions more workers eligible for extra pay when they work more than 40 hours a week.
Unfortunately today, millions of Americans arent getting the extra pay they deserve, Mr. Obama said in an 11-minute ceremony in the East Room of the White House. He said that a federal rule meant to limit overtime for highly paid, white-collar employees now covers workers earning as little as $24,000 a year.
Overtime is a pretty simple idea, Mr. Obama said. If you have to work more, you should get paid more.
It is the latest in a series of executive actions Mr. Obama has taken recently to sidestep Congress, where Republicans have blocked Democratic proposals to reduce economic inequality. For example, he has ordered an increase in the minimum wage paid by companies that do business with the federal government and has established a new type of tax-sheltered retirement plan for young workers.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/14/us/politics/obama-orders-rule-changes-to-expand-overtime-pay.html?_r=0