Blue Collar Workers Are Entitled To Overtime Pay

The “white collar” exemptions provided by FLSA do not apply to manual laborers or “blue collar” workers who perform work involving repetitive operations with their hands, physical skill and energy.  Stated another way, blue collar workers are always entitled to overtime pay.  For example, non-management production-line employees and non-management employees in maintenance, construction and similar occupations such as carpenters, electricians, mechanics, plumbers, iron workers, craftsmen, operating engineers, longshoremen, construction workers and laborers have always been, and will continue to be, entitled to overtime pay.  F

urther, the white collar exemptions to the FLSA — the executive, administrative, and professional employee exemptions — do not apply to police officers, fire fighters, paramedics, emergency medical technicians and similar public safety employees who perform work such as preventing, controlling or extinguishing fires of any type; rescuing fire, crime or accident victims; preventing or detecting crimes; conducting investigations or inspections for violations of law; performing surveillance; interviewing witnesses; interrogating and fingerprinting suspects; preparing investigative reports; and similar work.