Overtime rule blocked by federal judge in Texas

The salary threshold for overtime pay has not been changed since 2004. It remained at $23,660 for overtime eligibility. President Obama's administration passed a new regulation that would have doubled the salary threshold to $47,000, making many more workers eligible for overtime pay. That rule change has been blocked by a federal judge in Texas, however.

Under the new rule, workers who made less than $47,000 per year would be eligible for overtime compensation for the hours that they worked in excess of 40 in a week even if they were salaried employees. Twenty-one states filed lawsuits against the federal government to try to prevent the rule from being enacted. The federal judge in Texas agreed with the states that the threshold was set too high and would result in many management employees being eligible for overtime pay.

According to the court, the determination of overtime eligibility should depend on an examination of the duties and of the salary levels of workers. The court did clarify that the Department of Labor had the ability to utilize a salary threshold, however. The rule was opposed by multiple business organizations while numerous labor organizations supported it.

Non-exempt employees are eligible to receive overtime pay for all of the hours that they work in excess of 40 in a week. Some employers categorize workers incorrectly as management or administrative employees whose job duties do not meet the requirements for them to be considered to be exempt. Workers who believe that they should be eligible for overtime compensation might want to consult with an experienced employment law attorney. If the employee should have received overtime pay, the attorney may advocate for the client to receive the owed compensation.