Sheila Bair on Overtime Pay

The Obama Administration is looking to increase the federal threshold under which employers are required to pay overtime to salaried employees.

A former FDIC chair thinks some government involvement in employee pay is acceptable, but the current system is not totally effective.

“I do believe it is appropriate for government to offer some minimal level of a safety net,” Sheila Bair told FBN’s Trish Regan. “But how we do that, I think, is extremely inefficient and intrusive right now and can create distortions in the market and for business decision making.”

During the interview, the former FDIC chair also pointed out the pros and cons of the proposed law, including how it could help create jobs.

“There’s always a tradeoff. You make it a little more expensive to pay people… there are fewer people you can hire,” Bair said. She added, “if you get a lot of workers not being paid overtime now, where you’ll have to start, you might actually decide to hire more people so you don’t have to pay the overtime,” she said.