Texas wins court block on overtime pay rule

The rule would have made it mandatory for employers to pay salaried workers making less than $59,000 a year overtime pay.

AUSTIN, Texas — A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked a Biden administration overtime pay rule from taking effect in Texas.

The rule, which was set to go into effect on Monday, would have made it mandatory for employers to pay salaried workers making less than $59,000 a year overtime pay. It would also increase that threshold every three years. The current threshold is $35,000 a year.

U.S. district judge Sean Jordan, an appointee of Republican former President Donald Trump, says the rule violates state rights under the constitution.

Under federal law, workers with “executive, administrative and professional” (EAP) duties are exempt from getting overtime pay. Salary is one factor the Labor Department uses to determine when that applies.

But Texas argued the rule should be struck down because it determines overtime exemptions based on pay instead of workers’ duties. Meanwhile, the Labor Department argued workers with lower salaries often perform the same duties as their hourly colleagues but without overtime for additional hours.

In his ruling, Jordan said any rule implementing the EAP exemption must focus on workers’ duties.

The overtime rule is now blocked for Texas state workers pending the outcome of a legal challenge by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who has called the rule “regulatory overreach.”

The U.S. Department of Labor is expected to challenge the ruling.

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