Judge Halts DOL Overtime Regulations – Now What?
I imagine that, if you are reading this blog, you have heard the big news: after 5 p.m. on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, a federal judge in Texas issued an order granting a nationwide preliminary injunction that will prevent the DOL overtime regulations from going into effect today, Dec. 1, as everyone had planned.
According to the court, the plaintiffs had demonstrated a “likelihood of success on the merits” due to the fact that the DOL, in enacting the new overtime rule, had exceeded its authority through its significant increase of the salary threshold. The court took particular notice of the fact that an estimated 4.2 million workers currently ineligible for overtime would automatically become eligible, regardless of duties, due to the increased threshold. This, in the eyes of the court, would create “essentially a de facto salary-only test.” After analyzing the other requirements of a preliminary injunction, the court enjoined the DOL from “implementing and enforcing” the new overtime rule.