A federal judge yesterday issued a nationwide preliminary injunction on the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) new overtime rules set to go into effect on December 1. The judge, Amos Mazzant, ruled DOL likely overstepped its rulemaking authority by raising the salary threshold as high as it did and by implementing the automatic increase every three years.
Here are some key facts:
- With this ruling, the new overtime provisions, while now blocked from taking effect December 1, could still be implemented later
- Employers should continue to follow the existing overtime regulations until a final court decision is reached
- The new overtime rules have not been invalidated – rather, their implementation has been postponed indefinitely while the federal court makes a final ruling
- The rule was set to increase the overtime exemption threshold to $47,476, more than double the current threshold
ImpactAction: Employers should stay aware of further developments on this issue in the weeks ahead. The judge’s decision yesterday is intended to postpone the rule’s implementation while a final court decision is reached in a lawsuit by 21 states and various business groups aiming to halt the regulation permanently. SHRM’s Lisa Nagele-Piazza notes employers shouldn’t assume “the overtime rule will be permanently barred. They should still have a plan to move forward if necessary in the future.”
If you have any questions about the overtime rule and its status, please contact an impactHR team member via email at info@impacthrllc.com or phone 410-312-7882.