Federal judge blocks Biden govt's rule to expand overtime pay for millions

A federal judge in Texas has blocked a new rule from the Biden administration that would have expanded access to overtime pay to millions more salaried workers across the U.S.On Friday, US District Judge Sean Jordan sided with the state of Texas and a group of business organizations that argued the Labor Department exceeded its authority when it finalised a rule earlier this year to significantly expand overtime pay for salaried workers ruling that the department could not prioritise employee wages over job duties when determining eligibility.Under the federal law, nearly all hourly workers in the US are entitled to overtime pay after 40 hours a week. But many salaried workers are exempt from that requirement unless they earn below a certain level.The Labor Department's now-scuttled rule would have marked the biggest increase to that cap in decades. Employers were required pay overtime to salaried workers who make less than USD 43,888 a year in certain executive, administrative