(a) Scope and significance of this part. (1) The Fair Labor
Standards Act of 1938 1 (hereinafter referred to as the Act),
brings within the general coverage of its wage and hours provisions
every employee who is ``engaged in commerce or in the production of
goods for commerce.'' 2 What employees are so engaged must be
ascertained in the light of the definitions of ``commerce'', ``goods'',
and ``produced'' which are set forth in the Act as amended by the Fair
Labor Standards Amendments of
1949, 3 giving due regard to authoritative interpretations by
the courts and to the legislative history of the Act, as amended.
Interpretations of the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division with
respect to this general coverage are set forth in this part to provide
``a practical guide to employers and employees as to how the office
representing the public interest in its enforcement will seek to apply
it.'' 4 These interpretations with respect to the general
coverage of the wage and hours provisions of the Act, indicate the
construction of the law which the Administrator believes to be correct
and which will guide him in the performance of his administrative duties
under the Act unless and until he is otherwise directed by authoritative
decisions of the courts or concludes, upon reexamination of an
interpretation, that it is incorrect.
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1 Pub. L. 718, 75th Cong., 3d sess. (52 Stat. 1060), as
amended by the Act of June 26, 1940 (Pub. Res. No. 88, 76th Cong., 3d
sess., 54 Stat. 616); by Reorganization Plan No. 2 (60 Stat. 1095),
effective July 16, 1946; by the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947, approved
May 14, 1947 (61 Stat. 84); and by the Fair Labor Standards Amendments
of 1949, approved October 26, 1949 (Pub. L. 393, 81st Cong., 1st sess.,
63 Stat. 910); by Reorganization Plan No. 6 of 1950 (15 FR 3174),
effective May 24, 1950; and by the Fair Labor Standards Amendments of
1955, approved August 12, 1955 (Pub. L. 381, 84th Cong., 1st sess., C.
867, 69 Stat. 711).
2 The requirement of section 6 as to minimum wages is:
``Every employer shall pay to each of his employees who is engaged in
commerce or in the production of goods for commerce wages at the
following rates--'' (not less than $1.00 an hour, except in Puerto Rico
and the Virgin Islands to which special provisions apply).
The requirement of section 7 as to maximum hours which an employee
may work without receiving extra pay for overtime is: ``no employer
shall employ any of his employees who is engaged in commerce or in the
production of goods for commerce for a workweek longer than forty hours,
unless such employee receives compensation for his employment in excess
of the hours above specified at a rate not less than one and one-half
times the regular rate at which he is employed.''
3 Pub. L. 393, 81st Cong., 1st sess. (63 Stat. 910).
These amendments, effective January 25, 1950, leave the existing law
unchanged except as to provisions specifically amended and the addition
of certain new provisions. Section 3(b) of the Act, defining
``commerce'', and section 3(j), defining ``produced'', were specifically
amended as explained in Secs. 776.13 and 776.17(a) herein.
4 Skidmore v. Swift & Co., 323 U.S. 134, 138.
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(2) Under the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947, 5
interpretations of the Administrator may, under certain circumstances,
be controlling in determining the rights and liabilities of employers
and employees. The interpretations contained in this bulletin are
interpretations on which reliance may be placed as provided in section
10 of the Portal-to-Portal Act, so long as they remain effective and are
not modified, amended, rescinded, or determined by judicial authority to
be incorrect. However, the omission to discuss a particular problem in
this part or in interpretations supplementing it should not be taken to
indicate the adoption of any position by the Administrator with respect
to such problem or to constitute an administrative interpretation or
practice or enforcement policy.
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5 Pub. L. 49, 80th Cong., 1st sess. (61 Stat. 84),
discussed in part 790 of this chapter.
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(b) Exemptions and child labor provisions not discussed. This part
does not deal with the various specific exemptions provided in the
statute, under which certain employees engaged in commerce or in the
production of goods for commerce and thus within the general coverage of
the wage and hours provisions are wholly or partially excluded from the
protection of the Act's minimum-wage and overtime-pay requirements. Some
of these exemptions are self-executing; others call for definitions or
other action by the Administrator. Regulations and interpretations
relating to specific exemptions may be found in other parts of this
chapter. Coverage and exemptions under the child labor provisions of the
Act are discussed in a separate interpretative bulletin (Secs. 570.101
to 570.121 of this chapter) issued by the Secretary of Labor.
(c) Earlier interpretations superseded. All general and specific
interpretations issued prior to July 11, 1947, with respect to the
general coverage of the wage and hours provisions of the Act were
rescinded and withdrawn by Sec. 776.0(b) of the general statement on
this subject, published in the Federal Register on that date as part 776
of this chapter (12 FR 4583). To the extent that interpretations
contained in such general statement or in releases, opinion letters, and
other statements issued on or after July 11, 1947, are inconsistent with
the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Amendments of 1949, they do
not continue in effect after January 24, 1950. 6 Effective on
the date of its publication in the Federal
Register, subpart A of this interpretative bulletin replaces and
supersedes the general statement previously published as part 776 of
this chapter, which statement is withdrawn. All other administrative
rulings, interpretations, practices and enforcement policies relating to
the general coverage of the wages and hours provisions of the Act and
not withdrawn prior to such date are, to the extent that they are
inconsistent with or in conflict with the principles stated in this
interpretative bulletin, hereby rescinded and withdrawn.
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6 Section 16(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Amendments of
1949 (63 Stat. 910) provides:
``Any order, regulation, or interpretation of the Administrator of
the Wage and Hour Division or of the Secretary of Labor, and any
agreement entered into by the Administrator or the Secretary, in effect
under the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as
amended, on the effective date of this Act, shall remain in effect as an
order, regulation, interpretation, or agreement of the Administrator or
the Secretary, as the case may be, pursuant to this Act, except to the
extent that any such order, regulation, interpretation, or agreement may
be inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, or may from time to
time be amended, modified, or rescinded by the Administrator or the
Secretary, as the case may be, in accordance with the provisions of this
Act.''
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[15 FR 2925, May 17, 1950, as amended at 21 FR 1448, Mar. 6, 1956.
Redesignated at 35 FR 5543, Apr. 3, 1970]
