Traditionally, a standard day at the office
for full-time workers involves eight consecutive, sedentary hours. But today,
workday hours and locations have become more varied.
A Harris Poll survey
commissioned by CareerBuilder highlights those shifts in work behaviors—which
have important implications for exempt overtime pay under the new Department of Labor (DOL) overtime rule that will take
effect Dec. 1.
According to the survey,
45% of workers say they take work home to finish outside office hours, and 49%
say they check or answer email and voicemail after they leave work. Such
out-of-office work will be considered compensable under the new rules for
white-collar workers who earn $47,467 or less per year.
The survey also reports
that 65% of baby boomers ages 45-54 and 61% of those age 55 and older agree the
typical eight-hour workday has become a thing of the past. Conversely, only 42%
of Gen Z workers ages 18-24 say the traditional 9-to-5 workday is
obsolete.
Workers 55 and older are
not as likely to work after hours as their younger co-workers. Specifically,
only 40% keep working and 46% check email and voicemail after normal working
hours, while 48% of Gen Z workers work longer hours and 59% say they check email
and voicemail after their normal workday ends.
If these employee behavior
patterns apply at your agency, join the Big “I” for a webinar, New Overtime Ruling – Decisions to Be Made, on
Aug. 30 at 2 p.m. ET to learn more about the new overtime rule’s
potential impacts on your agency staff work practices—and how you should prepare
before December.