Federal Judge Blocks Biden’s Plan to Expand Overtime Pay for Millions of Salaried Workers
A federal judge in Texas has dealt a heartbreaking blow to millions of salaried workers in the U.S., blocking a rule from the Biden administration that could have expanded overtime pay eligibility to many who desperately need it.
On Friday, U.S. District Judge Sean Jordan sided with Texas and business groups, ruling that the Labor Department had overstepped by prioritizing worker wages over job duties when determining overtime eligibility.
Most hourly workers in the U.S. get overtime pay after 40 hours a week, but many salaried workers don’t qualify unless their earnings are below a set limit. The rule, which would have been the largest increase in overtime protection in decades, was meant to help salaried workers earning under $43,888 a year, with a scheduled increase to $58,656 next year. The rule could have brought overtime pay to 4 million workers in its first year alone. However, this hope has now been dashed as the threshold reverts to the 2019 figure of $35,568, set under the Trump administration.
The Labor Department, which had promised to “raise the bar” for workers, now faces the bitter reality of a legal setback with no clear path forward. This isn’t the first time such a proposal has been blocked. An Obama-era effort to expand overtime pay in 2016 was similarly halted, leaving many salaried workers in limbo.
As businesses argue that the rule would have led to job cuts and reduced benefits, it’s hard not to feel the weight of the decision on the shoulders of workers who continue to struggle in a high-cost economy.
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