Commissioned Inside Sales Employee Exemption

Exemptions for some commissioned inside sales employees are contained in Wage Order 4, Professional, Technical, Clerical, Mechanical and Similar Occupations, and Wage Order 7, Mercantile Industry. However, the exemption is from overtime pay only, not from the other requirements of the wage orders — such as minimum wage, meal and rest breaks and tracking hours worked.

Generally, the exemption applies if:

• The employee earns more than 1.5 times the minimum wage; and
• More than half of the employee’s compensation represents commission earnings.