Publications

Bush Administration Attacks Overtime Pay, Comp Time

The Bush administration proposed new Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulations in March 2003 that would take away overtime pay and comp time from at least eight million workers, including hundreds of thousands of RNs and LPNs. The regulations covering professional, administrative and executive jobs have been modified to make it easier for employers to exempt more workers from the FLSA, and thereby deny them overtime.

Nurses are particularly vulnerable under the change to the professional exemption. Currently, a worker's primary duties must require "knowledge of an advanced type in a field of science or learning customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction and study." This has generally been interpreted to mean at least a four-year degree in a specific discipline, as opposed to a general liberal arts degree. The Bush administration has proposed that the knowledge requirement could be met through a combination of work or military experience, and attendance at a technical school or community college. Experienced salaried RNs without four-year nursing degrees and LPNs would more easily be exempt under this revised requirement.

It is uncertain whether the proposed regulations will go into effect. The U.S. House of Representatives recently voted to drop language from the federal omnibus spending bill that would have protected overtime. The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on the bill containing the amendment Jan. 20, 2004. President Bush has threatened to veto any bill that protects overtime. The omnibus bill would finance most of the federal government's domestic programs such as health, human services, transportation and education.

Print Version