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Projects Sought For CID Awards ARLINGTON, VA — Coverings, the North American global tile & stone ex- hibition, has opened its call for entries for the 2017 Coverings Installation & Design (CID) Awards. Available to architects, designers, installers and contractors, the CID Awards honor outstanding achievements in the de- sign and installation of tile and stone in both residential and commercial environments. New to this year's awards program: Winners will be invited to discuss their project as part of the show's conference program. Projects will also be displayed on a video wall and on signage through- out the exhibition floor, showcasing the work to the thousands of attendees. Prize-winning project teams, includ- ing each installer and designer, will receive $2,500 and a one-night stay in Orlando. "There is nothing quite like seeing how the mastery of design and instal- lation can come together to create truly astounding applications of tile and stone – the CID Awards put the spotlight on these projects and the talented teams behind each beautiful space," said Jennifer Hoff, president of Taffy Event Strategies, the event management company that produces Coverings. "Furthermore, the awards illustrate the enduring and infinite de- sign styles achieved by today's tile and stone products." An independent panel of judges will evaluate entries based on excellence in execution and installation; inspiring and original use of tile or stone, and overall design and purpose of the proj- ect. Projects will be assessed on their levels of creativity, craftsmanship and outstanding use of materials. Empha- sis will be placed on projects featuring an original or unusual use of materials, incorporating innovative technology, or combining aesthetics with function in an interesting way. Winning categories will include Residential and Commercial, and based on the submissions received, may extend to International, Artistic Use of Tile/Stone, Institutional, Community Project and more. Projects must have been completed within the past two years (January 2015 – December 2016). Multiple entries are accepted and encouraged, and there is no fee to enter. Entrants should submit through Coverings' online portal before the deadline of Jan. 6, 2017. The CID Awards are sponsored by Tile Letter and Contemporary Stone & Tile Design. Overtime Ruling for White Collar Workers Takes Effect, Eyed for Change WASHINGTON — On December 1, 2016, the Department of Labor's ruling on overtime regulations was scheduled to go into effect. Signed into law this past May by President Barack Obama, the ruling automatically extends overtime pay protections to over 4 million workers within the first year of implementation (see related Editorial, page 7). In 2014, President Obama signed a Presidential Memo- randum directing the department to update the regulations defining which white collar workers are protected by the Fair Labor Standards Act's (FLSA) minimum wage and overtime standards. Consistent with the president's goal of "ensuring workers are paid a fair day's pay for a hard day's work," the memorandum instructed the department to look for ways to modernize and simplify the regulations while ensuring that the FLSA's intended overtime protections are fully implemented. The department published a Notice of Proposed Rulemak- ing (NPRM) in the Federal Register and invited interested parties to submit written comments on the proposed rule. The department received over 270,000 comments in re- sponse to the NPRM, and the feedback helped shape the Final Rule. The Final Rule focuses primarily on updating the salary and compensation levels needed for Executive, Adminis- trative and Professional workers to be exempt. Specifically, the Final Rule: 1. Sets the standard salary level at the 40th percentile of earnings of full-time salaried workers in the lowest-wage Census Region, currently the South ($913 per week; $47,476 annually for a full-year worker); 2. Sets the total annual compensation requirement for high - ly compensated employees (HCE) subject to a minimal duties test to the annual equivalent of the 90th percentile of full-time salaried workers nationally ($134,004); and 3. Establishes a mechanism for automatically updating the salary and compensation levels every three years to maintain the levels at the above percentiles and to ensure that they continue to provide useful and effective tests for exemption. Additionally, the Final Rule amends the salary basis test to allow employers to use nondiscretionary bonuses and incentive payments (including commissions) to satisfy up to 10 percent of the new standard salary level. The initial increases to the standard salary level (from $455 to $913 per week) and HCE total annual compensation requirement (from $100,000 to $134,004 per year) will be effective beginning Dec. 1, 2016. Future automatic updates to those thresholds will occur every three years, beginning on Jan. 1, 2020. While the ruling was scheduled to go into effect earlier this month, it may be short-lived due to the recent election of Donald J. Trump as President. President-Elect Trump and other leading republicans are said to be interested in nullify- ing the ruling after he takes office next month. Showplace Wood Products CEO Tony Bour to Retire HARRISBURG, SD — After a career spanning 50 years in the kitchen cabinet industry, the CEO of Showplace Wood Products, Tony Bour, is retiring on Jan. 13, 2017. The move com- pletes a leadership transition plan as Paul Sova, Showplace Wood Products' president and COO, will step into the role of CEO following 37 years of business association with Bour. Established in 1999, Showplace Wood Products primarily distributes its customized cabinetry through 600+ indepen- dent kitchen and bath dealerships in all 50 states. Showplace Wood Products is the third cabinet manu- facturing company founded by Bour. He previously founded StarMark Cabinetry in Sioux Falls, SD, in 1979 and Decora Cabinetry, currently in Jasper, IN, in 1976. Within the cabi- net industry, Bour served two terms as the president of the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association (KCMA). Showplace transitioned from an investor-owned business to an employee-owned company in 2006. "While I'm proud of the companies I've started, I'm most proud of having created an opportunity for every employee to benefit from the success of the company through our ESOP," said Bour. The company has grown to achieve nearly $1 billion in total sales, having built and shipped 2.1 million cabinets. It currently employs 560 employee-owners. In addition to Bour's departure, Showplace Wood Prod- ucts' CFO Emery Lee will also be retiring on the same day. Sova has promoted Brent Aday, the company's controller, to succeed Lee as v.p. of administration/CFO. Benjamin Moore Names Color of the Year M O N T VA L E , N J — Benjamin Moore an- nounced its Color of the Year 2017: Shadow 2117-30, a rich, royal amethyst (see related Color Trend Report, Page 52). "Elusive and enigmatic, Shadow is a master of ambiance," said Ellen O'Neill, Benjamin Moore creative director. "It is a color that calls to mind a 'past,' yet it also can make a contemporary, color-con- fident statement. Shadow is sophisticated, provocative and poetic; it can bring energy to a space or harmony and a moment of respite." 14 Kitchen & Bath Design News • December 2016 INDUSTRY UPDATE NOTEWORTHY DEVELOPMENTS IMPACTING THE KITCHEN AND BATH MARKET