The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division will focus on new areas of regulatory updating.  According to the Spring 2018 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations, the agency will update Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulations addressing what constitutes a ‘regular rate’ of pay and rules regarding apprenticeship and employment opportunities available to 16 and 17 year old youths.  These rulemaking plans join the Division’s existing plans to update the white collar exemption rules and to update tip rules to align regulations with statutory changes resulting from the FY 2018 Consolidated Appropriations Act, which amended the FLSA’s tip language. 

With respect to plans to update ‘regular rate’ regulations, the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations explains that the FLSA requires employers to pay covered employees overtime calculated at 1.5 times the regular rate of pay.  The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will propose to “clarify, update, and define regular rate requirements under section 7(e)(2)” of the FLSA.

In explaining the scope that rulemaking regarding employment and apprenticeship opportunities for 16 or 17 year old employees will have, the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations notes that existing provisions limit the work that 17 and 17 year old youths can do in nonagricultural hazardous occupations.  The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will consider whether “the conditions that apply to the employment of all apprentices and student learners in hazardous occupations, should be updated to reflect the current economic and work environments and to allow for safe and meaningful apprenticeship opportunities and student-learner programs.”