Newsroom

September 03, 2015

NAFCU raises concerns about overtime proposal

NAFCU Regulatory Affairs Counsel Kavitha Subramanian raised concerns about the Labor Department's proposed changes to federal overtime provisions in a letter Thursday – in particular regarding consideration for geographic salary differences.

The proposal would allow certain full-time, salaried workers making less than $50,440 annually to be eligible for overtime.

Subramanian noted NAFCU's support for modernizing regulations to grant "access to fair pay for hard work," but said the proposal could have unintended consequences because of its lack of allowance for geographic salary differences and non-salary-based advancement opportunities such as travel and training.

She also noted that a one-size-fits-all approach puts many small credit unions in a difficult position, particularly regarding the suggestion that businesses can raise the salaries of existing employees to $50,440 to avoid the overtime requirements.

"Most small to midsized credit unions do not have the overhead margins to absorb that cost without a detrimental impact on the services that could be provided to consumers," Subramanian wrote. "NAFCU is concerned that the DOL proposal fails to adequately address the needs of small businesses including credit unions around the country that operate with very small financial margins in a highly competitive service-driven marketplace."

Subramanian also noted that NAFCU members have raised concerns about how the proposal would impact their ability to send mid-level staff to training conferences and similar events.