Exempt vs Non Exempt Employees – Are You Misclassified?

If you work in NY and earn at least $58,500 per year and are a professional, executive or managerial administrative salaried employee, which generally means you’re in management, or you exercise discretion and independent judgment or supervise at least two other employees, then you’re “exempt” from federal and state overtime rules after you’ve worked 40 hours in any given workweek.

Yet, just because you’re a salaried employee vs an hourly employee, that doesn’t mean you’re exempt, unless you earn above 58.5K and work in one of the capacities mentioned above. Many salaried employees are misclassified as exempt by employers to avoid paying lawfully earned overtime pay.

Under US law, exempt employees must earn at least $35,568 per year, but unless you’re a “professional,” lawyer, doctor, teacher, architect, etc., or a management “executive” who supervises others, has hiring/firing authority, or an “administrative” employee who exercises independent judgment and discretion about matters of significance in your workplace (not the average administrative assistant), you should be classified at “non-exempt” and paid overtime for every hour worked in excess of 40 hours per week.