Opinion Letters Tackle Bonus, Contribution Regular-Rate Status

Bonuses and insurance-policy contributions that may be excluded from regular-rate determinations when calculating overtime were addressed March 26 in three Labor Department opinion letters.

Holiday Gifts

Opinion Letter FLSA2020-3 discussed whether longevity payments are to excluded from the regular-rate determination.

Christmas payments made to a city’s employees based on their length of service must be included in their regular-rate determinations to calculate overtime pay, the Labor Department said. Based on the facts presented, the longevity awards were required under a city resolution, even though the resolution did not specify their form or timing of the payment, it said.

Required ...