On Tuesday officials from 21 states sued the U.S. Department of Labor over a new rule affecting overtime pay for traditionally exempt employees.  The rule would make about 4 million higher-earning workers eligible for overtime pay.  The lawsuit was filed filed in the U.S. District Court in Eastern Texas,

The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced the details of its final rule under the Fair Labor Standards Act in May of this year.  The rule establishes new salary thresholds for millions of traditionally exempt white collar employees.  The rule impacts employers in the following ways: 

-Raise the salary threshold indicating eligibility from $455/week to $913 ($47,476 per year), ensuring protections to 4.2 million workers.

-Automatically update the salary threshold every three years, based on wage growth over time, increasing predictability.

-Strengthen overtime protections for salaried workers already entitled to overtime.

-Provide greater clarity for workers and employers.

The final rule will become effective on December 1, 2016, giving employers more than six months to prepare. The final rule does not make any changes to the duties test for executive, administrative and professional employees.