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                             US Boosts Overtime Pay

   by Ken Bredemeier

   U.S. President Barack Obama extended overtime pay benefits Wednesday
   for 4.2 million American workers, an attempt to increase the paychecks
   for employees who often work long hours without getting any extra
   money.

   Obama's order doubles the pay threshold at which U.S. companies have to
   pay overtime to employees who work more than 40 hours a week, from
   $23,660 to nearly $47,500.

   Obama's directive could especially affect workers in fast food
   restaurants and retail stores, where employees who supervise other
   workers are often called managers, even if their salaries barely exceed
   that of their subordinates.

   "If you work more than 40 hours a week, you should get paid for it or
   get extra time off to spend with your family and loved ones," Obama
   said. "It's one of the most important steps we're taking to help grow
   middle-class wages."

   The White House estimated that the order could annually put $1.2
   billion a year into the pockets of workers over the next decade.

   But whether that actually occurs is unclear.

   The National Retail Federation, a lobbying group for stores across the
   country, said the Obama order could force businesses to cut the working
   hours for some employees to 40 hours a week so they would not be
   required to make overtime payments, which in the U.S. is 1 1/2 times
   the normal pay rate for the first 40 hours of work each week. If that
   happens, workers would spend less time on the job, but not result in
   them getting any more money.

   The White House said that under the old threshold, only 7 percent of
   U.S. workers qualified for overtime, a figure that will increase to 35
   percent when the overtime requirement takes effect on December 1.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/united-states-overtime-pay/3335959.ht
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References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/united-states-overtime-pay/3335959.html