Content Last Revised: 4/23/04 ---DISCLAIMER---

29 CFR 541.0 - Introductory statement.

• Section Number: 541.0
• Section Name: Introductory statement.

    (a) Section 13(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, as amended, 
provides an exemption from the Act's minimum wage and overtime 
requirements for any employee employed in a bona fide executive, 
administrative, or professional capacity (including any employee 
employed in the capacity of academic administrative personnel or 
teacher in elementary or secondary schools), or in the capacity of an 
outside sales employee, as such terms are defined and delimited from 
time to time by regulations of the Secretary, subject to the provisions 
of the Administrative Procedure Act. Section 13(a)(17) of the Act 
provides an exemption from the minimum wage and overtime requirements 
for computer systems analysts, computer programmers, software 
engineers, and other similarly skilled computer employees.
    (b) The requirements for these exemptions are contained in this 
part as follows: executive employees, subpart B; administrative 
employees, subpart C; professional employees, subpart D; computer 
employees, subpart E; outside sales employees, subpart F. Subpart G 
contains regulations regarding salary requirements applicable to most 
of the exemptions, including salary levels and the salary basis test. 
Subpart G also contains a provision for exempting certain highly 
compensated employees. Subpart H contains definitions and other 
miscellaneous provisions applicable to all or several of the 
exemptions.
    (c) Effective July 1, 1972, the Fair Labor Standards Act was 
amended to include within the protection of the equal pay provisions 
those employees exempt from the minimum wage and overtime pay 
provisions as bona fide executive, administrative, and professional 
employees (including any employee employed in the capacity of academic 
administrative personnel or teacher in elementary or secondary 
schools), or in the capacity of an outside sales employee under section 
13(a)(1) of the Act. The equal pay provisions in section 6(d) of the 
Fair Labor Standards Act are administered and enforced by the United 
States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.