On May 18, the White House announced its official revisions to U.S. overtime rules — a change that will expand overtime pay to 4.2 million U.S. workers nationwide who were previously ineligible for overtime pay. Now comes the challenge of successfully navigating these changes. 

Much of the attention around these rules is focused on the impact on employees' wages and the consequential labor cost decisions companies might undertake (such as cutting overtime hours or bonus/incentive pay) to maintain their bottom lines. But, these changes will also have a huge influence on employee benefits policies and plan options as employers decide on their approaches to stay compliant with the new regulations. 

Employers' compliancy strategies (such as reclassifying employees) will greatly impact both the availability and the level of various employee benefits policies and plans. And accurate employee reporting and classification — hourly versus non-exempt salaried, etc. — will be critical to ensuring employees receive adequate benefits compensation related to changes in benefits levels and new eligibility for certain benefits.