Texas judge blocks overtime rule

Today, a Texas federal judge granted a nationwide preliminary injunction against the U.S. Department of Labor’s unlawful new Overtime Rule. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is co-leading a twenty-one-state coalition, along with Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt. The new overtime rule more than doubled the salary threshold for a worker to be entitled to overtime, which would force many state and local governments, as well as private businesses, to substantially increase their employment costs.

After obtaining the injunction, Attorney General Paxton said:

“The Obama administration proved true to form when it ordered the Department of Labor to revise its interpretation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Namely, the administration assumes that through force of will alone, it could order a new economic reality into existence. The finalized overtime rule hurts the American worker. It limits workplace flexibility without a corresponding increase in pay and forces employers to cut their workers hours. All in all, it exchanges the advantages of negotiated benefits, personal to each worker, with a one-size-fits-all standard that only looks good in press statements. Not on my watch.”

In granting the injunction, U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant admonished: “the Final Rule . . . is contrary to the statutory text and Congress’s intent” and “Congress, and not the Department, should make that change.”

Because of the court’s injunction, the new rule will not take effect on December 1, 2016 anywhere in the nation.