July 2004 - Illinois Rejects Majority of Changes to Fair Labor Standards Act



On April 23, 2004, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published final regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The FLSA requires the payment of overtime at 1½ times the regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 hours in a week. To be exempt from this overtime requirement, an employee must generally satisfy all parts of the following 3-prong test:

  1. Salary Level Test: The employee’s salary must exceed a minimum threshold amount;
  2. Salary Basis Test: The employee must be paid on a salary basis;
  3. Duties Test: The employee must satisfy the duties test applicable for the particular exemption category, such as executive, administrative and professional.

The new FLSA regulations did not amend the basic three-prong test, but modified the criteria within each prong. The new FLSA regulations become effective August 23, 2004.

We previously summarized these regulations in a May 2004 Client Advisory. However, because the implementation of these final regulations in Illinois is not straightforward, this Client Advisory is a guide for Illinois employers.

The FLSA provides that if a state has overtime laws more protective to employees, the state law prevails with respect to the more protective aspects. On April 2, 2004, Governor Rod Blagojevich approved amendments to the Illinois Minimum Wage Act that exempt Illinois employers from certain of the proposed changes to the FLSA. The differences between the FLSA regulations as written and their application in Illinois are summarized in the chart below.


Practice Areas | Attorney Directory | Client List | Client Advisories | HIPAA Advisories | Articles/Seminars | Links | HIPAA Materials | Contact Us | Disclaimer