Obama’s Alabama-fought overtime rule gets blocked in court

A potentially damaging federal labor regulation proposed by the Obama Administration has just been blocked in court, thanks to Alabama and twenty other states that fought back against the rule. Now, Alabama Congressional leaders are praising the decision as one that will protect jobs.

The reaction surrounds the Department of Labor’s Overtime law, which was set to go into effect on December 1. First announced on May 23, the regulation would have meant that U.S. workers making under $47,500 a year would be required to be given overtime pay for working more than 40 hours a week. The rule was overturned on Tuesday, when U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant agreed that the rule was unlawful and issued a nationwide injunction.

According to reports, over 46 percent of workers within the state would have been affected. Many business owners claimed it would have forced them to either lay off employees or pass the increased the cost of doing business on to customers.

For months, Republican leaders in Congress have eyed a quick repeal of the mandate, which has been made possible through Trump’s election.

Rep. Bradley Byrne, a former labor lawyer, had been outspoken about the rule since it was first issued. He said that it was “never what the Obama Administration wanted people to believe it was.”

“The rule would have hurt American workers by moving them from salaried to hourly employees and greatly reducing opportunities for advancement. The rule would have been especially damaging for schools and non-profits, who couldn’t just increase costs to offset the added expenses,” Rep. Byrne said.

Senator Richard Shelby anticipates that similar regulations will soon be repealed under a GOP-led Congress.

“Americans spoke loud and clear about their frustration with these types of unilateral executive regulations that stifle economic growth and opportunity,” Sen. Shelby said. “Yesterday’s ruling is a victory for the American people, and I look forward to working with President-elect Trump and my Republican colleagues to reverse this and other job-destroying rules in the coming months.”