Alert: Texas Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Blocking DOL's New Overtime Rules

A United States District Court in Texas has issued an order enjoining, on a preliminary basis, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) from implementing and enforcing regulations that increase the salary threshold for exempt employees to $913 per week or $47,476 per year beginning December 1, 2016.  In reaching its decision, the Court determined that the Plaintiffs in the case had established a substantial likelihood of success on their claims that the DOL did not have authority to define and delimit the exempt classifications for executive, administrative and professional employees based on an employee’s salary.  The preliminary injunction has nationwide application.

A preliminary injunction preserves the status quo while the court determines the DOL’s authority to make and implement the regulations and the validity of the regulations. This preliminary injunction means that the new regulations will not take effect on December 1, 2016, and that at least for now, employers will not have to make or implement changes to comply with the increased salary threshold for exempt employees. However, this decision does not necessarily eliminate the possibility that the new rules will be implemented in the future. Stay tuned for further developments.