Nevada v. United States Department of Labor

**What Happened** The U.S. Department of Labor created a new rule that would have dramatically changed who gets paid overtime. Under existing law, employees earning less than $23,660 per year were automatically entitled to overtime pay when working more than 40 hours per week. The new rule would have doubled this threshold to $47,892, meaning millions more workers would have qualified for overtime pay starting December 1, 2016. Several states sued to stop this rule from taking effect. **What the Court Decided** The court sided with the states and blocked the Department of Labor's new overtime rule. The judge issued an emergency order preventing the higher salary threshold from going into effect as scheduled. This meant the overtime threshold stayed at the much lower $23,660 level. **Why This Matters for Workers** This ruling had significant consequences for American workers. The blocked rule would have extended overtime protections to an estimated 4.2 million additional employees, particularly managers and supervisors earning between $23,660 and $47,892 annually. Instead of receiving overtime pay for extra hours worked, these employees continued working without additional compensation, potentially saving employers billions in overtime costs while limiting workers' earning potential.