New Federal Overtime Pay Rules Will Impact More Workers in Texas Than Any Other State

© 2016 The Texas Lawbook.

By Michael V. Abcarian

(May 31) – In a long-simmering cauldron of controversy, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) finalized its highly controversial FLSA overtime pay exemption rules on May 18. The changes increase the minimum salary required for the application of the so-called “white collar exemptions” from the FLSA’s overtime pay requirements by a staggering 101 percent. These overtime exemptions are typically applied to executive, administrative and professional employees.

What does this mean for Texas employers? Texas employers will have to reevaluate the classifications of 1.2 million employees, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). The increased costs associated with this new pay matrix have the potential to reshape the workplace landscape as the new rules raise the minimum salary required for overtime exemptions from $23,660 to $47,476.