Labor/Employment
Feb. 11, 2025
California exempt status explained: Navigating salary and duties tests for employers
Employers in California often struggle with determining salaried exempt status for employees, as it involves both a "salary test" based on the minimum wage and a "duties test" requiring more than 50% of an employee's time be spent on higher-level tasks.
Jonathan Fraser Light
Managing Partner
LightGabler
760 Paseo Camarillo Ste 300
Camarillo , CA 93010-6002
Phone: (805) 248-7214
Fax: (805) 248-7214
Email: jlight@lightgablerlaw.com
UCLA SOL; Los Angeles CA
Light and his team members consult with over 5,000 companies throughout California regarding their day-to-day employment law needs.
Employers often are confused about the criteria for determining salaried exempt status for their executive or administrative employees. It's a two-part test. There is a "salary test" and a "duties test."
The salary test in California is a formula based on two times the minimum wage. California employers must use the California minimum wage, not the local minimum wage in a particular city that might be higher. At the 2025 statewide minimum wage of $16.50...
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