Absolutely. Some jobs don’t require much analysis–someone who files all day is always going to be non-exempt and the CEO is very unlikely to be anything but exempt.

But, organizations that don’t pay attention to this can get themselves all sorts of fines.

Corporate intransigence remains for job titles that have traditionally been treated by a company as exempt positions and paid a salary, but which don’t really qualify for any exemption. For example, there are many clerical positions for which an employer tries to recognize the significant contribution and responsibility by treating them as exempt, but these positions don’t meet the “administrative” exemption. An employer’s hesitancy to address the employee relations issue associated with an incorrect exemption is like a ticking time bomb.