Sen. Tipping introduces bill to expand overtime pay protections to more Maine workers

AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, Sen. Mike Tipping, D-Orono, introduced LD 513, “An Act Regarding Overtime Protections for Certain Maine Workers,” before the Joint Standing Committee on Labor and Housing. The bill would raise the cap for the maximum salary for receiving overtime pay, making more workers eligible for it.

“Overtime pay rules used to be a reliable way to ensure that the majority of middle- and working-class Americans would either make it home in time to see their families or be compensated fairly by their employer for working beyond the 40-hour standard week,” said Sen. Tipping. “In 1977, 66% of salaried employees enjoyed this protection. Today in Maine, that number is just 13%. This plummet is due in a large part to the fact that the threshold to determine who is eligible for these protections has not kept up with inflation.”

Right now, the salary threshold in Maine for being exempt from overtime protections is just $41,400 a year. If someone makes more as a salaried worker, they don’t automatically qualify for time-and-a-half overtime protections. This bill would slowly raise that threshold to the equivalent of $62,100 by 2026. This would protect another estimated 32,000 Maine workers.

The bill was met with strong support, including testimony from Adam Goode of the Maine AFL-CIO.

“Working people should be compensated for their labor, and should not be expected to work for free,” said Goode. “If you are currently an assistant store manager at the Dollar General or Best Buy and you make $44,000 a year, you could very well be working 50 hours a week. This means you are working 10 hours each week for free. If you work 60 hours a week, you are working 20 hours for free.”

James Myall of the Maine Center for Economic Policy, also testified in support of the bill.

“All Mainers deserve to be paid fairly for the work they do. When workers go above and beyond expectations, they should be paid accordingly,” said Myall. “However, for too many Maine workers today, earning as little as $42,000 a year can allow their employer to make them work 50 or 60 hours a week without any extra pay. That was never the intention of federal or state labor laws, and this bill would fix that.”

The bill faces further action in committee.