<P> By a vote of 248 to 171, the House of Representatives approved a bill to increase the minimum wage to $4.55 per hour in stages over a two - year period . The bill also allowed employers to pay new employees at least 85 percent of the minimum wage during the first sixty days of employment of a newly hired employee with no previous employment . The bill also increased the exemption from minimum wage law for small businesses from $362,500 to $500,000 of annual sales . By a vote of 61 to 39, the Senate approved a bill to increase the minimum wage to $4.55 per hour . President Bush vetoed the bill, calling the increase "excessive". The House of Representatives unsuccessfully tried to override the veto, voting 247 to 178 to override, 37 votes short . </P> <P> By a vote of 382 to 37, the House of Representatives approved a revised bill that would increase the minimum wage to $3.80 per hour as of April, 1990, and $4.25 per hour as of April 1, 1991 . The bill would allow a lower minimum wage for employees who are less than twenty years old . The bill eliminated different minimum wages for retail and non-retail businesses . The next week, the Senate approved the bill by a vote of 89 to 8 . Senators Orrin Hatch, Steve Symms, and Phil Gramm were unsuccessful at passing minimum - wage exemptions for small businesses and farmers using migrant or seasonal workers . President Bush signed the bill two weeks later . </P> <P> The 1996 amendment increased the minimum wage to $5.15 an hour . However, the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996 (PL 104 - 188), which provided the minimum - wage increase, also detached tipped employees from future minimum - wage increases . Prior to 1996, tipped employees received 50% of the prevailing minimum wage . The tipped employee minimum wage was frozen, under federal law at least, at $2.13 per hour (29 U.S.C. § 203). State laws that grant higher hourly wages remain in force . </P> <P> On August 23, 2004, controversial changes to exemptions from the FLSA's minimum wage and overtime requirements went into effect, making substantial modifications to the definition of an "exempt" employee . Low - level working supervisors throughout American industries were reclassified as "executives" and lost overtime rights . The changes were sought by business interests, which claimed that the laws needed clarification and that few workers would be affected . The Bush administration called the new regulations "FairPay". However, other organizations, such as the AFL - CIO, claimed the changes would make millions of additional workers ineligible to obtain relief under the FLSA for overtime pay . Attempts in Congress to overturn the new regulations were unsuccessful . </P>

Upon what are changes to the fair labor standards act based