A federal judge made a ruling this week that will impact the lives of millions of workers. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant shot down an overtime pay regulation that was initially brought forth by the Obama administration. The rule made it possible for 4.2 million workers to be eligible for time-and-a-half for every hour worked past 40 hours. But, the judged ruled with businesses in mind. Many businesses believed that the rule pushed the salary threshold excessively high and that the impact would increase labor costs and decrease morale, specifically for managers who would have to be demoted to an hourly employee. The rule, released by the Obama administration in May 2016, would have nearly doubled the threshold at which executive, administrative and professional employees are exempt from overtime to $47,476 from $23,660. The Labor Department planned for the ruling to go into effect on December 1. The executive director of National Employment Law Project, Christine Owens, says the decision prevents workers who’ve worked additional hours for their employer from getting the money they’ve rightfully earned. “…strips hard-earned, long overdue overtime pay protections from millions of America’s workers forced to put in extra hours on the job — away from their families — with no extra pay at all.” She added that the judge “has substituted his own judgment for that of the Department of Labor, which published the overtime rule after two years of work.”(via USA Today) Read more here…
