b'LEGAL MATTERSMachine Intelligence And SalariedLEGAL MATTERSEmployees Overtime EligibilitySTEVEN E. BERS, ESQ. // PVA GENERAL COUNSELA rtificialintelligence(AI)isevent planner, that types in the eventAI tool in your vessel business as a po-rapidlyautomatingtheveryvariables, and AI spits the food, menu,tentialworkerreclassificationevent, tasks that many overtime-ex- event schedule, and contacts waitstaffand you may be able to capture AIs empt vessel industry employees tradi- by email or text with reporting timesefficiencies without creating a wage-tionallyperformed.Morethanever,and assignments. Consider a vessel op- and-hour exposure.algorithmsscreenresumes,rankjoberation in which AI, based on historic candidates, flag regulatory compliancetrends and weather data, can determineItsfoodforthought,andinsome risks,reviewdocuments,oranalyzewhich fleet vessels to place in service oncases, vessel owners may need to take vast vendor or passenger data sets. Thea particular run, without the need forstockastowhethercertainsalaried humanroleforadministrativeman- human judgment and discretion.positions still qualify to be overtime agerscanshiftfromdecision-makerexempt. The PVA hotline is available to button-pusher. Once that happens,We might not be there yet, but werefor members seeking guidance. an employee may no longer satisfy thenot far off. Some vessel industry jobs, requirements to be overtime exempt. traditionally performed by skilled sal- Since1990,StevenBers,Esq.,has aried employees may now find them- advisedpassengervesselownerson To be overtime-exempt, managers mustselves to be button pushers, and thuslegalmattersrelatingtomarinelaw exercisediscretionandindependentovertime required. andmarineemployment.Healso judgment to qualify for the administra- serves as PVAs General Counsel, and tive overtime exemption. A supervisorEvery new algorithm changes the legalcan be contacted at 410-347-8724 orwhowasexemptundertheexecutivecalculus. Treat each new rollout of ansbers@whitefordlaw.com. exemption because he or she managed twoormorefull-timeworkersmay nolongerbenefitfromthatovertime exemptioniftheworkersroleshave become automated. Yesterdays exemptWe take the heat, manager,withtheadventofautoma- so you dont have to.tion, can erode into todays overtime-re-Cool. Because you need it. We deliver cool based on quiredworker,leavingemployersex- your reality. So no matter where you operate, hot days posedtoback-payliability,liquidatedand heavy loads will never slow you down. damages, and fee-shifting litigation.Lets consider a few industry hypothet-icals.Consideragalleymanagerthat used to determine a menu based on the number of guests anticipated, the pric- GRIDCOOLERWEKA Omegaes of foods, picking a vendor, and cal- Keel Cooler Boxcooler Laser Plateculating how many servers to book for the event. In the new world, all thosefernstrum.com| 1.906.863.5553| sales@fernstrum.com functionsanddecisionscanpossiblyISO 9001:2015bemadebyAIinput.Considerthe 2023 R.W. Fernstrum & Company. All rights reserved. FERNSTRUM and GRIDCOOLER are registered trademarks of R.W. Fernstrum & Company. All other trademarks cited are the property of their respective owners.45 SEPTEMBER 2025'