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Department of Labor Appeals Overtime Rule Injunction


A few weeks ago, I updated readers on the status of the overtime rule that had previously been announced during President Barack Obama's time in office.  That proposed rule sought to raise the overtime threshold and would have required employers to pay overtime to employees that earned less than $47,476.00 per year (up from the current "cut off" of $23,660.00 per year.)

Before the new overtime rule went into effect, late last year, a Federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction that blocked the implementation of the rule.  When President Donald Trump came into office, it was widely expected his Department of Labor would not appeal the preliminary injunction.  Subsequent to President Trump taking office, the judge who issued the preliminary injunction granted summary judgment in the case which made the injunction permanent.

To the surprise of some, this week, the Department of Labor appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.  The Department of Labor couched its appeal with a recognition that it was done, in part, to maintain the ability of the Labor Secretary, Alexander Acosta, to establish overtime regulations if he so chose.  In essence, the filing of the appeal allows the Department of Labor to preserve its options and challenge the apparent limits placed on the Department of Labor's rulemaking authority (which the Federal judge seemed to do in his order granting summary judgment.)  

Now to clarify, this is for all intents and purposes likely not an an attempt by the Department of Labor of ultimately seeking to enforce the overtime rule proposed during President Obama's term.  As noted above, this appeal seeks to clarify the scope of the Department of Labor's rulemaking authority.  Secretary Acosta and the Trump administration have previously indicated their interest in raising the overtime threshold from its current $23,660.00 per year threshold.  Something tells me we may see some movement on that front in the coming months.


For additional information:  https://www.benefitnews.com/news/dol-appeals-ruling-on-overtime-rule

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