Yes. The law does not require an employer to pay an employee in any particular way. Even normally exempt employees (who could be paid a salary) can be paid hourly. As long as non-exempt employees are paid overtime premiums, there is no violation of the law.

Soon, this question could become on the tips of everyone’s tongues. President Obama has proposed that the salary threshold for overtime exemptions be raised from $23,660 per year to approximately $50,000 per year. This is expected to happen soon and will force employers to convert salaried workers who are paid less than $50,000 to hourly non-exempt workers.

For example, if an assistant manager today is paid a flat salary of $800 per week, after this rule is changed, they will be converted to hourly ($20 per hour) and paid overtime premiums ($30 per hour). Many workers may question whether their rights had been violated in the past.

The answer to that question is “maybe.” It could be that they were misclassified before the change, even though they made more than $23,660. Many times employers misclassify workers under these laws in order to save payroll dollars.

Check out our website to better understand these rules! Contact The Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore with any questions.