Rep. Takano Leads Public Comment Letter Praising DOL’s Proposed Overtime Rule
Washington, D.C. – Today, Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), House Committee on Education and Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-VA), Workforce Protections Subcommittee Ranking Member Alma Adams (D-NC), Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-IL), Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL), and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) submitted a public comment letter to Department of Labor showing strong support of the Department’s proposed rulemaking to raise the overtime salary threshold.
Under this rulemaking DOL is seeking to:
· Raise the overtime salary threshold for salaried workers making less than the 35th percentile of weekly earnings of full-time salaried workers in the lowest-wage Census Region, or $55,068 annually.
· Include automatic updates every three years to keep pace with wages.
The Members write, “The stark reality is that millions of workers in the United States currently work additional overtime but do not receive fair compensation for their precious time. Overtime standards are long overdue for a meaningful update, and this proposed rulemaking appropriately meets the needs of Americans workers in all stretches of the country.”
This is the latest action Rep. Takano has taken in seeking to secure overtime pay protections for workers. In March, Rep. Takano reintroduced the Restoring Overtime Pay Act, which seeks to increase the overtime threshold from $36,000 to $82,000 by 2027. When the Department of Labor announced their rule change, Rep. Takano released a statement expressing his support of the proposal. Read the full text of the letter here.