On March 7, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a new proposed rule that would increase the white-collar salary threshold for exempt executive, administrative and professional employees from the current $23,660 to $35,308 per year. The DOL reports this significant increase could result in more than a million American workers being eligible for overtime compensation. The new rule does not make changes to the job duties test, nor does it provide for automatic adjustments to the salary threshold.
Employers may recall back in 2015, the DOL announced a proposed federal overtime rule and it didn’t end well. Before it went into effect, 21 states and a coalition of more than 50 businesses filed separate lawsuits challenging the rule, and the court issued a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking it. In September 2017, a federal judge struck down the controversial new rule. In the meantime, the DOL was directed by the new administration to gather more input on the overtime rule and propose a revision to the rules.