Did you know that on yesterday, November 22, 2016, a federal district court in East Texas granted a preliminary injunction that will temporarily blocks United States Department of Labor (DOL) from enforcing the its revised overtime law regulations on the white-collar exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)? This injunction is so “hot off the press” that in my quest to verify the information I called the DOL and they were unaware and referred me to the Legislative Library who was unaware and referred me the State of Texas Law Library where I was able to verify and confirm the information. Please note that this is not a permanent injunction but is only a temporary injunction. This is a great opportunity to run scenarios to implement ‘if and when’ the injunction is lifted. This temporary injunction prevents the regulations from going into effect on December 1. A “final” decision will be made at a later date on the actual merits of the case, so changes in the FLSA salary threshold for exemption may be back. In the meantime, you should speak with your employees who were affected by the new law and let them know that it will business as usual until a final decision is made. Please be mindful of how this change is communicated in an effort to retain your talent. If you need to speak to us, we are here!
To find the court order on Case 4:16-cv-00731-ALM Document 60 Filed 11/22/16 in its entirety go to: http://www.txed.uscourts.gov/page1.shtml?location=notable, then click on State of Nevada, et al vs United States Department of Labor, et al.
Nicole Bellow, *DBA, MBA, SPHR, SHRP-SCP
Sr. HR Consultant
Smarter HR Solutions 713-999-1205