On Jan. 5, the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued opinion letters covering specific overtime, worker classification, and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) issues. The agency said the opinion letters, which apply only to the taxpayer requesting them, are designed “to promote clarity, consistency, and transparency in the application of federal labor standards under the Fair Labor Standards Act and Family and Medical Leave Act. The opinion letters provide official written interpretations from the division that address real-world questions and explain how laws apply to specific factual circumstances presented by individuals or organizations that may also have a broader interest to those impacted by the issue presented.”

• FLSA2026-1: Whether an employee’s role meets the criteria for the learned professional exemption under section 13(a)(1) of the FLSA, and, if so, whether an employer is nevertheless permitted to reclassify the employee as non-exempt.
• 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.
• FMLA2026-1: How a school closure of less than a full week impacts the amount of leave a school employee uses under the FMLA.
• FMLA2026-2: Whether FMLA leave may be used for time spent traveling to or from medical appointments, including where an employee provided the employer with medical certification from a health care provider that confirms the employee’s need for the appointment, but the certification does not address travel to or from the appointment.

NAIFA Staff Contact: Jayne Fitzgerald – Director – Government Relations, at jfitzgerald@naifa.org and Mike Hedge-Senior Director-Government Relations at mhedge@naifa.org