Today, the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) announced that the minimum compensation required to qualify for the state's computer-professional exemption in 2012 will increase by 2.5 percent from the 2011 rate. Beginning January 1, 2012, an employee must be paid a salary of at least $81,026.25 annually ($6,752.19 monthly) to qualify for the exemption.
Computer-Professional Exemption Salary Requirement
The minimum salary and hourly rate requirements for the computer-professional exemption under Labor Code Section 515.5 are adjusted annually for inflation according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). In 2008, the compensation requirement for the computer-professional exemption increased by 5.4 percent (effective January 1, 2009). In 2009, the CPI decreased by 1.4 percent, but despite the decrease, the DIR maintained the then-existing compensation rate for the computer-professional exemption (effective January 1, 2010). In 2010, the CPI increased by 1.1 percent, but the DIR left the compensation requirement for the computer-professional exemption unchanged from the prior year (effective January 1, 2011). Despite the fact that the CPI had increased by 1.1 percent from the prior year, the CPI still remained below 2008 levels. Therefore, the CPI increase was not a net "percentage increase," as required by the statute.
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