Wal-Mart agreed to pay $4.83 million in back wages and damages after the Department of Labor found it had misclassified and failed to pay overtime to nearly 4,500 vision center managers and asset protection coordinators. The DOL warned that misclassifying employees as exempt from overtime protections is a costly problem that can result in penalties. Employers must understand FLSA exemptions and ensure employees' duties and pay meet exemption criteria to avoid liability for back pay, overtime, fees and fines.