Overtime Pay: Federal Judge Blocks Obama Administration’s Rule
With just over a week before it was scheduled to take effect, a federal judge blocked the implementation of an Obama administration overtime pay rule that would have extended overtime eligibility to some 4 million Americans.nnThe Labor Department’s sweeping overhaul to the overtime rule required employers to pay time-and-a-half to their employees who worked more than 40 hours in a given week and earned less than $47,476 a year. That salary threshold is about twice what currently allows workers to be exempted from overtime. As NPR’s White House Correspondent Scott Horsley told our Newscast Unit, supporters of the rule called it “long overdue” as inflation took its toll on overtime protection.nn”The rule was one of the administration’s most far-reaching efforts to boost pay for workers at the lower end of the income ladder. It’s one of many administrative actions that was already facing the threat of reversal from the incoming Trump administration.” The measure, which had been set to take effect Dec. 1, was intended to send a jolt to slow-growing U.S. incomes.nnOn Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant III issued a preliminary injunction in the case, siding with plaintiffs who said the new overtime rules would have caused an uptick in government costs in their states and made it mandatory for businesses to pay millions in additional salaries. Business groups said the new rule changes would have eventually led to layoffs.nnThe timing of the block brings an early answer for workers who were wondering about the rule’s fate after the election. As NPR’s Business Correspondent Yuki Noguchi reported earlier this month: “In any presidential transition, previous policies are subject to review. Trump has pledged to undo President Obama’s executive orders, dismantle the Affordable Care Act, reverse policies on clean air, immigration and on Dodd-Frank financial reform. This [month], the Congressional Budget Office said canceling the overtime rule would reduce employers’ compliance costs and boost profits, a point advocates refute. This leaves businesses wondering how they should proceed on rules that might be unwound.”nnWith Republicans controlling both houses in Congress and the Trump administration set to take office in less than two months, the new overtime rule’s long-term future remains in limbo. The Department of Labor issued the following statement regarding the federal court’s preliminary injunction.n
Happy Thanksgiving! We are very happy whenever the season of Thanksgiving is fast approaching because we consider this as a wonderful holiday that permit us the best opportunity to thank all our valued friends, supporters and clients. These previous years have really been good to our company, and so we thank all of you for continuing to patronage us and for experiencing our remarkable service.nnWishing you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving!n— Welter Healthcare Partners
The new Overtime Rule law implemented by the Department of Labor REQUIRES you to modify how you pay some of your full-time salaried employees, or fall victim to expensive lawsuit nightmares.nnEffective Dec. 1st, the new Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) rule changes the threshold for salaried employees. In a nutshell, this means you could be among the thousands of practices REQUIRED to pay overtime to full-time employees making less than $47,476 a year. And, noncompliance really isn’t an option.nnSo what can you do about it…nnHuman Resources Expert, Lori Kleiman, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, is offering a healthcare-specific FLSA Overtime Compliance online training session just for you. In only 60-minutes, you’ll receive a step-by-step breakdown of the new FLSA requirements as they relate to healthcare. You’ll learn how to ensure compliance with this new rule – which includes avoiding overpaying your staff too – and have time to get your specific questions as well.nnHere are just a few of the proven tactics you’ll receive by attending this step-by-step, 
About R. Todd Welter • MS, CPCnFounder and President of Welter Healthcare Partners
The Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing made the decision to postpone the Go Live date of:n
The 2017 Medicare Part B Physician’s Fee Schedules have been posted to the Novitas Solutions website. Downloads are available in Adobe PDF, Microsoft Excel, and Plain Text formats. The Code Search feature will not have 2017 fees loaded until the first week of January, 2017.nn