3.2 Million Women to Receive Salary Increases Under New Overtime Proposal
By Charity Jackson, AFL-CIO
Today, the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR), in coordination with MomsRising, released a new report that reveals working women will be benefit hugely from the newly proposed overtime changes, with 3.2 million women receiving salary increases. Some 36% of working women who were formerly exempt under the outdated overtime laws will be eligible now to receive overtime pay if they work longer than the standard 40-hour workweek.
“Working women deserve to be compensated for every hour they spend on the job. The updated overtime rule proposed by the Department of Labor will provide millions of women and their families with the financial security they’ve worked to achieve,” said AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Elizabeth Shuler.
The report revealed single mothers will benefit the most from the new overtime rules, with 44% of single mothers who were formerly denied access to overtime receiving extra income under the updated rule. Nearly 8% of all single mothers regularly work over 40 hours a week and will gain automatic coverage to receive overtime pay under the new rule. The report’s analysis also shows that African American and Latino women will experience higher levels of coverage under the new overtime rule.
The analysis proves that increasing the salary threshold used to determine overtime eligibility is the most important action the administration can take, independent of Congress, to significantly raise wages for all working people.
To read the report in its entirety, click here.