Pennsylvania

New Overtime Rules Should Help 60K Workers in Pennsylvania

The rule taking effect Wednesday guarantees time-and-a-half pay to nearly all hourly employees who work more than 40 hours a week

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More than 60,000 Pennsylvania residents are expected to see a pay increase in 2020 as a new federal overtime rule goes into effect.

The rule taking effect Wednesday guarantees time-and-a-half pay to nearly all hourly employees who work more than 40 hours a week and salaried workers making less than about $35,500 per year.

Pennsylvania Secretary of Labor and Industry Jerry Oleksiak tells the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review the rule should benefit about 61,000 people in the state.

The minimum wage remains $7.25 an hour in Pennsylvania, the same it’s been since 2009.

Gov. Tom Wolf wants to join the 29 other U.S. states that have boosted the minimum wage. He’s proposed raising it to $15 an hour by 2025. But pay hike bills have stalled in the state Legislature.

The state Senate overwhelming passed a bill in November that would boost Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to $9.50 an hour within two years. The House has yet to act on the measure.

Oleksiak believes the increased pay would help 400,000 Pennsylvanians make ends meet while reducing the need for public assistance.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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