Page:Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. v. Hewitt.pdf/11

Rh The critical question here is whether Hewitt was paid on a salary basis under §602(a) of the Secretary’s regulations. Indeed, the parties have taken all other issues off the table. They agree that Hewitt was exempt from the FLSA only if he was a bona fide executive. They agree, as they must, that under the regulations, a high-income employee like Hewitt counts as an executive when (but only when) he is paid on a salary basis; the salary paid is at or above the requisite level ($455 per week); and he performs at least one listed duty. See §541.601; supra, at 3–4. In denying executive status, Hewitt puts all his chips on that standard’s first part: He argues only that he was not paid on a salary basis. See Brief for Respondent i–ii, 1. Helix then narrows the issues still further. As described above, a worker may be paid on a salary basis under either §602(a) or §604(b). See supra, at 4–5. But Helix acknowledges that Hewitt’s compensation did not satisfy §604(b)’s conditions. That is because Helix did not guarantee that Hewitt would receive each week an amount (above $455) bearing a “reasonable relationship” to the weekly amount he usually earned. See Brief for Petitioners 28; supra, at 5–6. So again, everything turns on whether Helix paid Hewitt on a salary basis as described in §602(a). If yes, Hewitt was exempt from the FLSA and not entitled to overtime pay; if no, he was covered under the statute and can claim that extra money.