DOL Rescinds 2024 Overtime Rule, Reinstates 2019 Salary Threshold
The DOL formally rescinded the 2024 overtime rule, reverting to 2019 standards.
Why it matters: Employers must update wage and hour compliance plans as the salary threshold for white-collar overtime exemptions returns to $35,568. Labor lawyers and in-house counsel should reassess classifications and pay practices based on this regulatory shift.
- On May 14, 2026, the DOL published a technical amendment rescinding the 2024 overtime rule and reinstating the 2019 rule.
- The 2024 rule proposed raising the white-collar exemption salary threshold to $43,888 in July 2024, then to $58,656 in January 2025.
- A federal court vacated the 2024 rule nationwide on November 15, 2024, concluding the DOL exceeded its authority.
- The reinstated 2019 salary threshold for white-collar exemptions is $35,568 per year.
On May 14, 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor officially published a technical amendment that rescinds the 2024 overtime rule and reinstates the 2019 overtime rule, marking a significant regulatory reversal affecting wage and hour compliance under federal law. This action follows a November 2024 federal district court ruling in Texas that vacated the 2024 overtime rule nationwide on grounds that the DOL exceeded its authority in issuing the updated threshold.
The 2024 overtime rule, initially published on April 23, 2024, sought to expand overtime eligibility by increasing the minimum salary threshold for white-collar exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in two phases: to $43,888 annually effective July 1, 2024, and to $58,656 annually starting January 1, 2025. This was intended to cover more employees eligible for overtime pay.
However, with the court's vacatur of the rule, the DOL's amendment reinstates the 2019 overtime rule, which sets the federal salary threshold for white-collar exemptions at $35,568 per year. Employers are now required to comply with these prior standards, impacting payroll structures and employee classification practices.
This regulatory rollback signals a return to the pre-2024 salary benchmarks, requiring in-house legal teams and labor counsel to update compliance frameworks currently designed around the higher threshold. The shift also underscores ongoing legal scrutiny over the DOL’s authority to set overtime pay rules.
For further analysis, see the CalChamber breakdown, the Alston & Bird review, and the Husch Blackwell court analysis.
By the numbers:
- $43,888 — Proposed annual salary threshold for white-collar exemptions effective July 1, 2024, under the 2024 rule
- $58,656 — Proposed annual salary threshold effective January 1, 2025, under the 2024 rule
- $35,568 — Reinstated annual salary threshold under the 2019 overtime rule