Texas State Workers Not Subject to Expanded Overtime Protections, Judge Rules

A last minute court order has temporarily excluded those employed by the state of Texas from the U.S. Department of Labor’s final rule that extends overtime protections to millions of white collar workers across the nation. The June 28 order granted the Texas government’s request for a preliminary injunction, halting the Department of Labor (DOL) rule as it applies to the Lone Star State as a government employer, while multiple lawsuits challenging the rule are ongoing. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act requires that workers be paid overtime for all hours that are worked above 40 hours in a workweek. However, this requirement did not apply to salaried employees who primarily perform executive, administrative, or professional (EAP) duties and earn more than $35,568 a year, or $684 per week. These employees are known as EAP-exempt workers....