Maine is known for its hard workers. Salaried workers are no exception; with many working from home during this pandemic, it’s easier than ever for their working hours to bleed into personal time.
While these employees work longer and longer hours, wages have stagnated. Many aren’t even eligible for overtime pay when their workweeks extend beyond 40 hours.
Long before this pandemic, worker protections were decimated. It’s crucial to restore them, not just for our recovery, but for the long-term economic health of our state. That’s why we’re grateful for Rep. Rachel Talbot Ross, who is fighting to expand overtime protections for hard-working Mainers.
As it stands, professional and administrative salaried employees earning more than $36,000 annually are completely exempt from overtime laws in Maine. Unless their employer directly provides overtime, many of these workers are forced to go without it entirely.
Rep. Talbot Ross’s new bill, An Act to Restore Overtime Protections for Maine Workers, would provide overtime pay to more workers in Maine, annually increasing the minimum salary threshold qualifying an employee for overtime pay until it reaches $55,224 by the year 2024.
Maine has some of the hardest working people in the country, and they deserve to be paid adequately for their time on the job.. Thank you, Rep. Talbot Ross, for standing up for working Mainers!
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