{
    "schema": "amendsignal.record/1",
    "generated_on": "2026-11-04",
    "publisher": {
        "name": "AmendSignal",
        "url": "https://amendsignal.com/"
    },
    "notice": "Coverage is limited, so a missing record does not mean nothing changed. General information, not legal advice. Check the official source. Please cite the record's url.",
    "change": {
        "id": 57,
        "url": "https://amendsignal.com/changes/wage-and-hour-division-says-predetermined-safety-and-performance-bonuses-must-be-counted/",
        "title": "Wage and Hour Division says predetermined safety and performance bonuses must be counted in the overtime regular rate",
        "change_type": "guidance",
        "change_type_label": "Opinion letter",
        "status": "guidance_issued",
        "status_label": "Issued as agency guidance",
        "status_statement": "As of our last check on November 2, 2026, this is agency guidance, not a rule. It explains how the agency reads the law and does not create a legal requirement on its own.",
        "significance": "No new requirements",
        "jurisdiction": {
            "code": "US",
            "name": "United States"
        },
        "authority": {
            "name": "Wage and Hour Division",
            "short_name": "WHD"
        },
        "identifiers": [
            {
                "type": "opinion_letter_number",
                "label": "Opinion letter",
                "value": "FLSA2026-2"
            }
        ],
        "dates": [
            {
                "type": "publication",
                "label": "Published",
                "value": "2026-01-05",
                "precision": "day"
            }
        ],
        "in_short": {
            "what_changed": "The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued an opinion letter saying that bonuses earned under a plan with set criteria (punctuality, safety, attendance, efficiency) are not discretionary. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the agency says they must be included in the regular rate for overtime.",
            "whos_affected": "The letter answers one waste management employer's questions about its drivers. Its reasoning is relevant to any employer that pays non-exempt employees bonuses based on criteria announced in advance.",
            "what_to_do": "This letter creates no new duties for employers. If you pay non-exempt employees incentive bonuses under set criteria, consider checking that those bonuses are included in the regular rate and that overtime is calculated per workweek."
        },
        "summary": "In opinion letter FLSA2026-2, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor says that hourly incentive bonuses paid under a predetermined safety, job duties and performance plan are not discretionary bonuses under the Fair Labor Standards Act. In the agency's view, they must be included in the regular rate used to calculate overtime. The letter answers one employer's facts and creates no new legal requirement. It explains how the agency reads existing overtime rules and walks through the overtime math.",
        "business_functions": {
            "state": "limited",
            "functions": [
                {
                    "slug": "human-resources",
                    "name": "Human resources"
                },
                {
                    "slug": "payroll",
                    "name": "Payroll"
                },
                {
                    "slug": "legal-and-compliance",
                    "name": "Legal and compliance"
                }
            ]
        },
        "added_on": "2026-11-03",
        "updated_on": null,
        "updates_in_progress": null,
        "last_checked": "2026-11-02",
        "record_url": "https://amendsignal.com/changes/wage-and-hour-division-says-predetermined-safety-and-performance-bonuses-must-be-counted/record.json",
        "what_changed": [
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The WHD says the employer must include the safety, job duties and performance bonuses in each employee's regular rate for every workweek the bonuses are earned, because they are not discretionary and fit no other statutory exclusion.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opening paragraphs",
                        "excerpt": "It is our opinion that, under the facts and circumstances set forth in your request, your employer must include the bonus payments you describe in each employee’s regular rate of pay for every workweek said bonuses are earned."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opening paragraphs",
                        "excerpt": "These payments do not qualify as discretionary bonuses excluded by the Act from the regular rate, or fall within any other statutory exclusion."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The letter explains that a bonus can be left out of the regular rate as discretionary only if three conditions are met, and that this plan fails the first two: the bonus amount comes from a predetermined plan, not the employer's sole discretion at or near the end of the period.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section A",
                        "excerpt": "Section 7(e)(3) of the FLSA requires that three conditions be satisfied for a payment to qualify as an excludable discretionary bonus"
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section A",
                        "excerpt": "Rather, the amount of the bonus is calculated using a predetermined plan to incentivize certain work performance."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The WHD says that because the plan automatically triggers the bonus once criteria are met, the employer has given up its discretion, even if people might disagree on whether a particular criterion was met.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section A",
                        "excerpt": "Thus, because the policy automatically triggers the bonus upon meeting the criteria, the employer has effectively “abandoned” its discretion with respect to the fact and amount of the payment."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The letter corrects the requester's math: because the bonus was also paid for each overtime hour, the overtime shortfall in the requester's example is $4.75 per overtime hour, not $14.25.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "The employer actually paid $27.50 for each overtime hour: $21.50 in straight-time earnings plus a $6.00 premium."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "Thus, the correct overtime shortfall is $4.75 per hour, not $14.25."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The letter gives a worked example: a regular rate of $17.60 (total straight-time earnings divided by hours worked), with an extra half-time payment of $8.80 for each overtime hour.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "His regular rate for the workweek is therefore $17.60 ($880.00 ÷ 50 hours) and the half-time rate is $8.80 ($17.60 × 0.5)."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The letter is an official interpretation by the WHD Administrator that may be relied on under section 10 of the Portal-to-Portal Act.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Closing paragraphs",
                        "excerpt": "This interpretation may be relied upon in accordance with section 10 of the Portal-to-Portal Act"
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "text": "The letter applies existing law and cites an earlier 2004 opinion letter in support. It does not say that it withdraws or replaces any earlier guidance.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section A",
                        "excerpt": "see also WHD Opinion Letter FLSA2004-11 at 3 (Sept. 21, 2004)"
                    }
                ]
            }
        ],
        "who_is_affected": [
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The requester's employer operates in the waste management industry and pays its drivers $12.00 per hour, plus bonuses of up to $9.50 per hour.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Background",
                        "excerpt": "You represent that your employer operates in the waste management industry and pays its employee drivers a rate of $12.00 per hour."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Background",
                        "excerpt": "The maximum bonus amount is $9.50 per hour."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The opinion rests only on the facts the requester gave, and different facts might lead to a different conclusion.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Note",
                        "excerpt": "This opinion is based exclusively on the facts and circumstances described in your request"
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Note",
                        "excerpt": "The existence of any other factual or historical background not contained in your letter might require a conclusion different from the one expressed herein."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "text": "The reasoning is relevant to any employer that pays non-exempt employees bonuses under predetermined criteria, because the letter states the general principle that such bonuses count toward the regular rate unless an exclusion applies.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "But if a bonus plan neither satisfies the requirements of 29 U.S.C. § 207(e)(3), nor fits within another statutory exclusion, any bonus payment made must be included in the employee’s regular rate for overtime purposes."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The WHD presumed the drivers are non-exempt and did not decide whether they fall under the motor carrier overtime exemption.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Background",
                        "excerpt": "Based on the practices described, we presume that your employer classifies its drivers as non-exempt"
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Footnote 1",
                        "excerpt": "You did not request—and so this letter does not provide—an opinion on whether these drivers qualify for the overtime exemption in 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(1)"
                    }
                ]
            }
        ],
        "business_implications": [
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The WHD concludes that the requester's employer has not paid the full overtime premium to employees who received the bonus.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion",
                        "excerpt": "Accordingly, the employer has failed to pay in full the overtime premium"
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "When a bonus is calculated per hour, the WHD says the employer can allocate it to the hours worked in each workweek of the pay period and figure overtime separately for each workweek.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "the employer can allocate the bonus based on the hours worked in each of the relevant workweeks and calculate any overtime premium pay due for each separate workweek."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The letter says employers may still tie bonuses to conditions such as safety protocols, codes of conduct or performance targets. Such bonuses still count toward the regular rate unless an exclusion applies.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "Notably, employers may structure bonuses to require employees to meet certain conditions, including adherence to safety protocols, codes of conduct, or performance targets"
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "The letter notes that business costs, such as vehicle damage, cannot be passed on to an employee if doing so results in underpaying the minimum wage or overtime premium pay.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Footnote 2",
                        "excerpt": "Business costs, however, cannot be passed along to an employee to the extent that doing so (whether through payroll deduction or otherwise) results in an underpayment of the minimum wage or an employee’s overtime premium pay."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "text": "When the bonus has already been paid for overtime hours, the amount owed is the missing half-time portion on the bonus, not a full time-and-a-half on it. This matters when an employer estimates possible underpayments.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "The employer actually paid $27.50 for each overtime hour: $21.50 in straight-time earnings plus a $6.00 premium."
                    }
                ]
            }
        ],
        "required_actions": [
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "Under Fair Labor Standards Act section 7(e), the WHD says any bonus that is not a discretionary bonus and fits no other statutory exclusion must be included in the employee's regular rate for overtime purposes.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "General Legal Principles",
                        "excerpt": "The “regular rate” includes “all remuneration for employment paid to, or on behalf of, the employee,” with limited exceptions."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "But if a bonus plan neither satisfies the requirements of 29 U.S.C. § 207(e)(3), nor fits within another statutory exclusion, any bonus payment made must be included in the employee’s regular rate for overtime purposes."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "text": "Under Fair Labor Standards Act sections 6 and 7(a)(1), employers must pay non-exempt employees at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime at no less than one and one-half times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "General Legal Principles",
                        "excerpt": "The FLSA requires that employers pay at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay “at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at which [the employee] is employed” to all non-exempt employees for all hours worked over 40 hours in a workweek."
                    }
                ]
            }
        ],
        "recommended_actions": [
            {
                "kind": "recommendation",
                "kind_label": "Our suggestion",
                "text": "Consider reviewing your bonus plans for non-exempt employees to identify bonuses whose payment and amount follow criteria announced in advance, since the WHD treats these as non-discretionary.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section A",
                        "excerpt": "Thus, because the policy automatically triggers the bonus upon meeting the criteria, the employer has effectively “abandoned” its discretion with respect to the fact and amount of the payment."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "recommendation",
                "kind_label": "Our suggestion",
                "text": "Consider checking that overtime calculations divide total straight-time earnings, bonuses included, by total hours worked in each workweek, and pay half that rate as the premium for each overtime hour.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "General Legal Principles",
                        "excerpt": "To calculate the regular rate, the employer must divide the total straight-time earnings by the total hours worked in that same workweek."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "recommendation",
                "kind_label": "Our suggestion",
                "text": "Consider reviewing any bonus adjustments or deductions for vehicle or property damage to make sure they do not push pay below the minimum wage or reduce overtime premium pay.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Footnote 2",
                        "excerpt": "Business costs, however, cannot be passed along to an employee to the extent that doing so (whether through payroll deduction or otherwise) results in an underpayment of the minimum wage or an employee’s overtime premium pay."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "kind": "recommendation",
                "kind_label": "Our suggestion",
                "text": "If bonuses have been left out of the regular rate, consider working with your legal or compliance advisers to estimate any overtime shortfall, using the half-time method the letter describes.",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "Thus, the correct overtime shortfall is $4.75 per hour, not $14.25."
                    }
                ]
            }
        ],
        "required_actions_assessment": null,
        "applicability": [
            {
                "criterion": "where",
                "label": "Where",
                "answer": "United States, nationwide",
                "kind": "fact",
                "kind_label": "From the source",
                "evidence": []
            },
            {
                "criterion": "employer_type",
                "label": "Employers",
                "answer": "Employers subject to the FLSA that pay non-exempt employees bonuses. The letter itself answers one waste management employer's facts.",
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Background",
                        "excerpt": "You represent that your employer operates in the waste management industry and pays its employee drivers a rate of $12.00 per hour."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Note",
                        "excerpt": "This opinion is based exclusively on the facts and circumstances described in your request"
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "criterion": "size",
                "label": "Size",
                "answer": "The letter sets no size threshold. It describes the overtime rule as applying to all non-exempt employees.",
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "General Legal Principles",
                        "excerpt": "The FLSA requires that employers pay at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay “at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at which [the employee] is employed” to all non-exempt employees"
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "criterion": "industries",
                "label": "Industries",
                "answer": "All industries that pay incentive bonuses to non-exempt workers. The facts involve waste management drivers.",
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Background",
                        "excerpt": "You represent that your employer operates in the waste management industry"
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "any bonus payment made must be included in the employee’s regular rate for overtime purposes."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "criterion": "functions",
                "label": "Functions",
                "answer": "Payroll, which calculates the regular rate and overtime, and HR or compensation teams that design bonus plans.",
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "General Legal Principles",
                        "excerpt": "To calculate the regular rate, the employer must divide the total straight-time earnings by the total hours worked in that same workweek."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "Employers must heed to these core principles, imbued throughout the Act, when structuring pay components to achieve business objectives in a legally compliant manner."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "criterion": "applies_if",
                "label": "Applies if",
                "answer": "You pay non-exempt employees bonuses based on criteria set in advance and calculate overtime on base pay alone.",
                "kind": "inference",
                "kind_label": "Our analysis",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Background",
                        "excerpt": "Instead, your employer calculates all overtime premiums owed using only each employee’s $12.00 base hourly rate."
                    },
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section A",
                        "excerpt": "Rather, the amount of the bonus is calculated using a predetermined plan to incentivize certain work performance."
                    }
                ]
            },
            {
                "criterion": "action",
                "label": "Action",
                "answer": "Consider reviewing bonus plans and overtime math to include non-discretionary bonuses in the regular rate.",
                "kind": "recommendation",
                "kind_label": "Our suggestion",
                "evidence": [
                    {
                        "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf",
                        "locator": "Opinion, Section B",
                        "excerpt": "But if a bonus plan neither satisfies the requirements of 29 U.S.C. § 207(e)(3), nor fits within another statutory exclusion, any bonus payment made must be included in the employee’s regular rate for overtime purposes."
                    }
                ]
            }
        ],
        "open_questions": [
            {
                "question": "How should an employer allocate a non-discretionary bonus that is not calculated per hour and cannot easily be tied to specific workweeks?",
                "context": "The letter addresses only a bonus calculated per hour, which the employer can allocate to the hours worked in each workweek."
            },
            {
                "question": "Do drivers like those in the letter qualify for the motor carrier overtime exemption?",
                "context": "The letter presumes the drivers are non-exempt and says it gives no opinion on that exemption."
            },
            {
                "question": "How far back must an employer go to pay overtime shortfalls from bonuses left out of the regular rate?",
                "context": "The letter finds the employer underpaid overtime but does not say how past underpayments should be corrected."
            }
        ],
        "events": [
            {
                "event_type": "originating_action",
                "label": "Issued",
                "occurred_on": "2026-01-05",
                "summary": "FLSA2026-2: Whether section 7(e) of the FLSA permits an employer to exclude certain bonus payments from an employee's regular rate of pay. The letter also addresses how to include these payments in the calculation of employee overtime premiums if the payments must be included in an employee's regular rate of pay.",
                "source": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf"
            }
        ],
        "corrections": [],
        "sources": [
            {
                "label": "Whether section 7(e) of the FLSA permits an employer to exclude certain bonus payments from an employee's regular rate of pay. The letter also addresses how to include these payments in the calculation of employee overtime premiums if the payments must be included in an employee's regular rate of pay.",
                "publisher": "Wage and Hour Division",
                "role": "primary",
                "url": "https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/opinion-letters/FLSA/FLSA2026-2.pdf"
            }
        ]
    }
}