Prokott Comments on the Potential Impact of the Supreme Court's Review of Pharmaceutical Sales Reps' FLSA Status

Following a split among federal circuit courts, the U.S. Supreme Court will now take up the issue of whether pharmaceutical sales representatives are entitled to overtime pay – a ruling that may well affect employers in other industries.

A key question the Court must consider, Daniel Prokott told Business Insurance, is whether deference is owed to the interpretation advanced by the Department of Labor (DOL) that pharmaceutical sales reps should not be considered exempt and therefore should be paid overtime.

"The scope of the (Supreme Court's) review could result in a pretty narrow decision that just simply addresses deference given to the DOL interpreting this particular exemption, and also looking specifically at only the outside sales exemption and its applicability to pharmaceutical sales representatives," he said. 

Although Prokott expects that the Supreme Court will try to issue a limited ruling in the Christopher v. SmithKline Beecham Corp. case, even a narrow decision, Prokott added, could affect other industries that have sales-related employees who do not actually close deals – even if their jobs are not directly analogous to those of pharmaceutical sales reps.