Articles Discussing Overtime Exemptions Under The FLSA.

Judge Amos Mazzant of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas has decided that he will not halt the lawsuit challenging the U.S. DOL’s new overtime exemption rules pending a ruling from the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on his earlier order temporarily blocking the rules from taking effect.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, along with twenty-five other members of Congress, have filed an amicus brief in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals urging the Court to reverse the injunction issued by a Texas federal judge enjoining enforcement of the Department of Labor’s recent increase to the salary basis threshold for the white collar exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).

Many businesses let out a sigh of relief after a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction1 halting the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) final rule increasing the minimum pay requirements for exempt executive, administrative, and professional employees. The preliminary injunction was issued about a week before the rule was scheduled to take effect on December 1, 2016. The preliminary injunction effectively maintains the status quo under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which requires that these employees be paid at least $455 per week to maintain their exemption from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime requirements.

The pending court fight between the U.S. DOL and a coalition of states and business groups over the new overtime exemption rules will not be resolved before President Obama leaves office in January, even though the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has now granted the DOL’s motion to set an expedited briefing schedule on its appeal from a preliminary district court order blocking the rules from taking effect. While we don’t know for sure what position the Trump administration will take on the new rules, the nomination of fast-food executive Andy Puzder as Secretary of Labor seems to be a pretty clear sign. Puzder has been a vocal critic of the new rule.

The Texas AFL-CIO recently filed a motion to intervene as a defendant in the action filed against the Department of Labor (DOL) regarding its highly publicized regulation expanding overtime coverage. Fearing the DOL under President-Elect Donald Trump might abandon its appeal to the Fifth Circuit of a nationwide preliminary injunction issued by a Texas District Court judge, the Texas AFL-CIO seeks to defend the Final Rule even if the DOL backs out.

In a December 8, 2016 Order, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the DOL’s request for expedited briefing of its appeal of the preliminary injunction issued by a district court judge that had enjoined the DOL from implementing its regulation raising the salary level for the white collar exemptions. The Court even set a quicker briefing schedule than DOL had requested in its Motion.

On December 2, one day after filing its appeal of the preliminary injunction blocking its new salary basis regulations, the DOL filed a request for expedited briefing and oral argument in the appeal. The DOL has requested that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals set an expedited schedule whereby briefing would be complete on February 7, 2017 and oral argument would occur on the first available date thereafter. According to the DOL, the injunction was issued in error because the Fair Labor Standards Act gives the DOL “broad latitude” to issue regulations defining and delimiting the white collar exemptions, including the salary basis test.

On December 1, 2016, the Department of Labor appealed the district court’s preliminary injunction ruling. It is expected that the DOL will request the Fifth Circuit to rule on the appeal quickly, but the Fifth Circuit may not grant this request, and the appeal may not be resolved prior to January 20, 2017. If the appeal is not resolved prior to the Trump Administration, the appeal could be withdrawn by the new administration or legislation passed by the new Congress nullifying the DOL regulation.

The U.S. Department of Labor isn’t taking “no” for an answer on its attempt to hike the minimum salary required for workers with certain duties to remain exempt from overtime. The agency stated today that it “strongly disagrees” with the Texas federal court’s ruling last week that halted the implementation of the salary increase, covered in our November 23 client alert. A notice of appeal has been filed. We don’t know whether this fight will conclude in the court system or whether the DOL will change its course under the new administration. But it looks like things are about to get interesting and we’ll keep you updated along the way.

It looks like the U.S. Department of Labor’s appeal of the order blocking the new overtime exemption rules won’t be decided before President Obama leaves office. Under the Court of Appeals’ regular rules, the DOL’s opening brief would have been due in mid-January, followed by the response brief 30 days later, and the DOL’s reply 14 days after that, likely taking the briefing process into March. Last Friday, December 2, the DOL filed a motion asking the Court of Appeals to set an expedited briefing schedule, under which the DOL would file its initial brief by December 16, and all briefing would be completed by February 7, 2017. The DOL’s motion further asks the Court of Appeals to set a date for oral argument on “the first available date after close of briefing.”

Just days before the Department of Labor’s (DOL) final overtime rule was scheduled to go into effect, a U.S. District Judge in the Eastern District of Texas issued a preliminary injunction, blocking the rule from taking effect across the country. Employers now face a number of legal, practical, and morale issues as they await a final decision in the matter.

Earlier today, the United States Department of Labor issued a written public response on its website to the injunction issued by Judge Mazzant enjoining the enforcement of its Overtime Final Rule, that was set to become effective on Thursday.

On Tuesday, November 22, 2016, a federal court in Texas issued a preliminary injunction temporarily barring the Department of Labor from implementing the December 1, 2016 salary rate increase for the white collar overtime exemptions. What will happen next is not certain, and depends in part on the Trump administration reaction after the inauguration. Many employers are considering pulling back previously-announced salary increases and re-classifications. When evaluating this option, employers should consider not only the uncertainty of the law at the federal level, but also state-law limitations on an employer’s ability to change pay terms for at-will employees.1

Since 2014, employers have been preparing for, and many have already communicated or implemented, classification and compensation changes to comply with the U.S. Department of Labor’s revised regulations, which would double the minimum salary required for certain exempt employees effective December 1, 2016. For more information concerning the changes, see our May client alert on this topic. Yesterday, a federal judge in Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the DOL from implementing the minimum salary hike from $455 weekly ($23,660 annually) to $913 weekly ($47,476 annually). State of Nevada et al. v. U.S. Department of Labor et al., No. 4:16-cv-731 (E.D.Tex. November 22, 2016).

Executive Summary: Employers do not have to make changes to comply with the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) new overtime regulations by the December 1, 2016 deadline. In a surprising decision, a federal District Court in Texas issued an injunction halting the implementation of the new overtime rules nationwide. If the injunction remains intact when President-elect Trump takes office, it may allow the new administration additional avenues in which to seek to modify, amend or repeal the DOL’s overtime rule, even if further judicial action is not taken to ultimately overturn the regulations.