Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division issued a new round of FLSA opinion letters, including Opinion Letter FLSA2026‑1, which addresses the application of the “learned professional” exemption to a licensed clinical social worker. While much of the letter focuses on familiar exemption principles, one aspect of the DOL’s analysis serves as an important, and often overlooked, reminder for employers: even when an employee clearly qualifies for an exemption, the employer is not required to classify the employee as exempt.
The Basics of the Opinion Letter
The DOL’s opinion letter responds to a request from a licensed clinical social worker who had recently been reclassified from exempt to non-exempt by the employer. The social worker noted that certain supervisory responsibilities had been removed from the job description, but the job duties still included clinical assessments, treatment planning, crisis intervention, and the consistent exercise of professional judgment — all duties typically associated with the Fair Labor Standards Act’s “learned professional” exemption.
The employee questioned whether the position should still be classified as exempt under the FLSA’s learned professional exemption notwithstanding the removal of the supervisory duties.
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