Lawsuits have been filed  against the U.S. Department of Labor on behalf of 21 states, including Ohio, over the new overtime rule. Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Eastern Texas asking that the new rule be blocked. In addition, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and more than 50 other business groups have filed a challenge against the regulation.

As we have been telling you for some time now, the new rule is set to go into effect on December 1, 2016 and will impact millions or workers across the country.

These lawsuits argue that the DOL has taken things too far with the new overtime rule and the automatic salary increases appear to be big sticking points. As our previous blogs have explained, the salary threshold to be classified as an overtime-exempt employee will double from $455 per week to $913 per week ($47,476 annually) under the new rule.  The lawsuits address the increase in the minimum salary threshold will substantially raise employment costs, which will be cumbersome to employers and could lead to layoffs and other operational challenges.  The filings also contend that the overtime rule violates the Constitutions Tenth Amendment.