To be exempt from overtime you must be paid on a salary basis, paid at least $684 a week, and perform duties that genuinely match a defined exemption — executive, administrative, professional, computer or outside sales. Failing any one of the three defeats the exemption. The duties test is the one that fails most often, and a job title is not part of any of them.
Test one: salary basis
A predetermined amount each pay period that does not vary with the quality or quantity of work. Improper deductions can destroy the exemption — docking pay for a half-day absence, or for slow business, is the classic error.
Test two: salary level
At least $684 a week. Below that, no amount of managerial responsibility creates an exemption. Several states set higher figures and those govern where they apply.
Test three: duties, and this is the one
Executive. Primary duty is managing, customarily directing at least two full-time employees, with real authority over hiring and firing or recommendations that carry weight.
Administrative. Office work directly related to management or general business operations, and — the part that gets missed — exercising discretion and independent judgement on significant matters. Following a detailed procedure is not discretion.
Professional. Work requiring advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning, customarily acquired by prolonged specialized instruction, or recognized creative work.
Why the duties test fails so often
Because “primary duty” means the principal, main, major duty — not one of several. An assistant manager who spends most of the week doing the same tasks as the staff they nominally supervise fails it, whatever the org chart says.
The burden sits with the employer
Exemptions are narrowly construed and the employer has to establish that one applies. Your job is not to prove you are non-exempt; theirs is to prove you are not.
What to write down
A normal week, task by task, with rough time shares. That single document decides most misclassification disputes, and it is far easier to produce now than from memory later.
Common questions
What makes someone exempt from overtime?
All three of a salary basis, a salary of at least $684 a week, and duties genuinely matching a defined exemption. Failing any one defeats it.
Which test fails most often?
The duties test. Primary duty means the principal duty, not one of several, so a supervisor doing mostly front-line work fails it.
Can a job title make me exempt?
No. Title plays no part in any of the three tests, and exemptions are narrowly construed.
Can my employer dock my salary?
Improper deductions can destroy the exemption entirely. Docking for a partial-day absence or for slow business is the classic error.
Who has to prove the exemption?
The employer. You do not have to prove you are non-exempt; they have to establish that an exemption applies.