Will you be getting a raise December 1? Republicans and Democrats disagree

Press Release

On December 1, if you're a salaried employee who makes less than $47,476 a year, your pay structure will very likely be changing. That's because a new federal overtime rule is going into effect, which updates the threshold at which salaried "white collar" employees are eligible for overtime. Right now, if you make $23,660 or more per year, in many cases you don't get paid overtime. After December 1, that number changes to $47,476. So if you make less than $47,476 per year, you will be eligible for overtime pay.

Essentially, many of the country's lowest salaried workers will either earn money for hours that previously went unpaid or not have to work over 40 hours a week.

The government estimates 4.2 million people will be impacted by this change, 55.6 percent of them women and 31.3 percent between the ages of 25 and 34.

But Republicans and Democrats disagree on whether or not the impact will be good or bad for America.

"This rule will hurt the very people it's supposed to help," says a spokeswoman for the Republican's House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

"Many workers will be demoted, have less flexibility at work, and enjoy fewer opportunities to advance up the economic ladder," she adds.

Suzanne Bonamici, U.S. Representative for Oregon's 1st congressional district (D) and a member of the Democrat's Committee on Education and the Workforce, disagrees.

"I think we're just going to see people getting fairly compensated for working overtime which only makes sense," she says. "Everybody pretty much agrees that this is going to create jobs."

"There are a lot of Oregon businesses that are seeing the benefits of these kinds of policies," says Bonamici.

Source