Wage and Hour Law and Practice

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In an article for the October 2017 issue of The Corporate Counselor, Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Tim Garrett examined the latest ruling related to the Department of Labor’s (DOL) overtime rule following Texas Federal Judge Amos Mazzant’s final rule striking down the Obama-era rule. If implemented, the rule would more than double the minimum salary that employers would have to pay “white-collar” workers to meet overtime pay exemptions. Judge Mazzant’s final ruling cited that the DOL rule had made the salary level too high and that the exemption would inadvertently become based on pay and not duties of the position. Following the ruling, the DOL withdrew its appeal of the preliminary injunction and the Fifth Circuit granted the request.
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Texas Federal Judge Amos Mazzant has issued a final ruling striking down the overtime rule. In the August 31 ruling, Judge Mazzant used essentially the same reasoning on which he based his temporary injunction ruling.  In light of this final decision, the appeal of his temporary injunction likely becomes moot. In addition, Judge Mazzant made clear that he is not finding that the DOL is prevented from ever using a particular salary level, but rather is invalidating this particular rule as going “too far” in essentially eliminating those who perform exempt duties but make less than the high salary threshold.
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On March 31, 2017, the United States Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA) dismissed a contractor’s claims against the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for a lack of jurisdiction, stating that the contractor should have secured a final decision from the General Services Administration (GSA) prior to filing its claim. According to the CBCA, since the dispute was over the terms of a GSA Schedule contract and not over contract performance, proper procedures call for a decision from the GSA Schedule contracting officer before the CBCA can weigh in on the dispute.
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As we previously reported, Congress has taken its final steps in repealing Obama’s Fair Pay & Safe Workplaces rule, one of the most controversial rules enacted by the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council under President Obama. On February 6, the Senate gave the final vote of approval of the House Resolution overturning the…

In an article published by The Corporate Counselor, published by ALM’s Law Journal Newsletters, Tim Garrett discussed the latest developments and next steps surrounding the Department of Labor’s (DOL) overtime rule. The November 22, 2016, injunction of the rule and subsequent appeal by the DOL have created uncertainty for employers, with some having prepared…

In an article published by Government Executive, Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Richard Arnholt provided insight on the state of the Fair Pay, Safe Workplaces rule following a preliminary injunction issued by a Texas district judge in October blocking parts of the rule. Richard argues that the president and agencies went around Congress in a quest for efficiency and cost savings, but provided no reliable data to prove the need for the rule, while forcing contractors to provide detailed reporting on non-final decisions and determinations of alleged labor law violations that could end up denying them a contract without due process.…
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