By Katie Murar
Medill News Service
Labor Secretary Thomas Perez claimed the new overtime regulation announced earlier this week will level the playing field for middle class workers.
“I’m very proud of the new regulation, and it’s going to potentially help millions of workers become the middle class managers that they are,” said Perez, speaking Friday at the SABEW 2016 annual conference in Washington, D.C.
The Labor Department issued the new regulation on Wednesday, which will require employers to grant time-and-a-half overtime pay when salaried workers earning up to $47,476 a year exceed 40 hours of work in a week. This is more than double the previous threshold of $23,660, which was set in 2004. The rule will take effect on Dec. 1.
In the discussion moderated by Bernie Kohn, weekend managing editor at Bloomberg News, Perez said two ways that workers will benefit from the regulation is through more money and time.
“Some workers will see more money if their salary is raised to surpass the threshold, and some people will see the benefit of time” Perez said. “If someone working 70 hours a week right now is making $30,000 a year, that person who is working 30 hours for free will get the gift of time.”
Michael Lustig, audience member and editor at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said the possibility of fewer work hours will be a benefit for employees.
“It’s certainly good to hear from the source the desired impact of the regulation,” Lustig said. “The extra time may be extremely beneficial for someone with a family to take care of, and it would be more time to invest in your family or community life, which is certainly a benefit that many recognize as valuable.”
Addressing the argument of hourly cuts, Perez claimed fewer hours is a good thing and will bring more people into the work force.
“More people are going to have to be hired to fill in, or the existing workers are going to get more hours,” Perez said.
On the topic of income inequality, Kohn referenced a new AFL-CIO study that claimed CEOs made 335 times more than the average employee salary last year. In response, Perez claimed the administration is “fighting this battle on many fronts.”
“In order to level the playing field, we need to increase federal paid leave,” Perez said. “Canada has more women in the work force because they have invested in paid leave. If we had kept pace with Canada over the last 15 years on female labor force participation, we would have 5.5 million more women in the workplace.”
Kohn also referenced the mass deportation proposals that have been brought up in the recent political election, which Perez described as “ridiculous propositions” that would not become a reality.
“What will happen next year, and I say this with confidence, is comprehensive immigration reform,” Perez said. “Demonizing the largest growing population in America is dumb politics, and against American values.”
Perez also addressed the possibility of running for vice president by tamping down the rumors.
“I have not been approached and I love my day job,” he said.
