Where Do We Go from Here?
In November, a Texas federal district court issued a nationwide
injunction temporarily blocking the implementation of the new Fair
Labor Standards Act (FLSA) final Overtime Rules (OT Rules). To
humbly borrow from Dr. Martin Luther King's last book, we find
ourselves asking, Where Do We Go from Here? Chaos or
Community?
A Bit of History and Chaos
In May 2016, the OT Rules were finalized and issued by the
United States Department of Labor (DOL). In mid-September, 21
states led by Texas and Nevada filed suit against the DOL and Labor
Secretary Thomas E. Perez, attempting to enjoin the implementation
of the new white-collar exemption OT Rules. Separately, a
consortium of national and local business groups and chambers of
commerce also filed their own lawsuit and were joined in the same
case. On November 22, 2016, the Honorable Judge Amos L. Mazzant,
III of the Eastern District of Texas granted the states'
application for a nationwide
