The U.S. Department of Labor announced in a January 5, 2017 press release that it was scrapping the six-factor test it had used for years to determine whether interns are employees for purposes of the Fair Labor Standards Act...more
The DOL will appeal a Texas federal court’s ruling that the Obama administration’s 2016 overtime rule exceeded the DOL’s authority. The appeal comes nearly two months after the DOL dropped an earlier appeal of that court’s...more
In light of the Texas district court’s recent judgment invalidating the 2016 overtime rule, the DOL filed an unopposed motion to withdraw its appeal of the November 2016 order that preliminarily enjoined the rule on a...more
9/8/2017
/ Appeals ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Minimum Salary ,
Obama Administration ,
Over-Time ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Summary Judgment ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
On Thursday, the Texas federal district court that had issued a preliminary injunction in November 2016 blocking implementation of the Obama Administration’s revised overtime rule granted the plaintiffs’ motion for summary...more
The U.S. Department of Labor has announced that on Wednesday, July 26, 2017, it will formally seek public comment on the overtime rule by publishing a Request for Information (RFI)....more
Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Labor filed a reply brief in further support of its appeal of the November 22, 2016 order in State of Nevada v. United States Dep’t of Labor, No. 4:16-CV-00731 (E.D. Tex.). That order,...more
7/1/2017
/ Appeals ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Lack of Authority ,
Minimum Salary ,
Over-Time ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Request For Information ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
On June 27, 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor sent a Request for Information related to the now-enjoined overtime rule to the Office of Management and Budget for review. After OMB completes its review, the RFI will be...more
6/28/2017
/ Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Minimum Salary ,
OMB ,
Over-Time ,
Public Comment ,
Request For Information ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Stays ,
Trump Administration ,
White-Collar Exemptions
In what likely signals the end of the era of “Administrator’s Interpretations,” the DOL announced today that it will return to the practice of issuing opinion letters to provide guidance to employers and employees on Fair...more
The Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit held earlier this week that a plaintiff who received at least the minimum wage and any overtime pay owed could not sue under the FLSA for withheld tips....more
Employers across the U.S. were troubled by the sub-regulatory guidance issued by the DOL in 2015 and 2016 on independent contractors and joint employment. Today, the DOL announced the withdrawal of that guidance...more
Remember the new federal overtime rule that was going to double the minimum salary for the “white collar” exemptions? In November, a Texas district court issued a nationwide injunction preventing the rule from taking effect....more
Yesterday, Judge Amos Mazzant of the Eastern District of Texas denied the motion of the U.S. Department of Labor to stay further district court proceedings in the overtime litigation. The DOL had asked the district...more
1/4/2017
/ Appeals ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Interlocutory Appeals ,
Minimum Salary ,
Motion To Intervene ,
Motion To Stay ,
Over-Time ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
This month Richard Zall, Chair of Proskauer's Health Care Department, explores developments likely to occur with respect to the Affordable Care Act as a result of the new administration. In our Rulings, Filings and...more
12/21/2016
/ 21st Century Cures Act ,
Affordable Care Act ,
CEOs ,
CMMI ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Health Savings Accounts ,
Individual Mandate ,
Local Ordinance ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Pay Ratio ,
Pay Ratio Tax ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) ,
Repeal ,
Subsidies ,
Tax Credits ,
Trump Administration
On December 8, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the U.S. Department of Labor’s motion seeking an expedited briefing schedule on its appeal of the district court injunction of the overtime rule that was scheduled to...more
On December 2, the U.S. Department of Labor filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit seeking an expedited briefing schedule on its appeal of the district court injunction of the overtime rule that...more
Following a Texas court’s issuance of a nationwide preliminary injunction enjoining the new overtime rule on November 22, the U.S. Department of Labor filed a notice of appeal of the decision yesterday....more
A federal judge in Texas has enjoined the new overtime rule on a nationwide basis. Specifically, the U.S. Department of Labor is enjoined from “implementing and enforcing” the new rule (which would have raised the minimum...more
On October 19, 2016, the New York State Department of Labor published a proposed rule amending the Minimum Wage Orders codified at 12 NYCRR Parts 141, 142, 143, and 146, to implement the minimum wage increases passed by the...more
The new overtime rules—requiring a minimum weekly salary of $913 ($47,476 annually) for most exempt executive, administrative, or professional employees—are scheduled to take effect on December 1....more
Barring something completely unexpected, the new overtime rules—effectively setting a federal minimum wage of $913 per week ($47,476 per year) for most exempt executive, administrative, or professional employees—will take...more
10/12/2016
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Minimum Salary ,
Misclassification ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Unpaid Overtime ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
On September 28, 2016, the House of Representatives passed a bill to delay the effective date of the new overtime rule by six months (from December 1, 2016 to June 1, 2017). ...more
The House of Representatives has passed a bill to delay the effective date of the new overtime rule by six months (from December 1, 2016 to June 1, 2017). ...more
On December 1, 2016, the annual cost of classifying most executive, administrative, or professional employees as “exempt” from the overtime rules more than doubles ($23,660 to $47,476). Is your company ready for this change?...more
8/24/2016
/ Bonuses ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Minimum Salary ,
Misclassification ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Sales Commissions ,
Standard Duties Test ,
Unpaid Overtime ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
The DOL has released detailed information about the new overtime exemption rule, which is expected to be published in the Federal Register on May 18, 2016. As predicted in our prior post, the new regulation will take effect...more
According to Bloomberg BNA, the DOL’s final overtime rule, which is expected to be released May 18, 2016, will take effect December 1, 2016, not within 60 days as previously indicated. This gives employers nearly 200 days to...more