Overtime has become a significant legal issue in recent years as workers around the country are filing a record number of federal lawsuits alleging employers are violating labor laws by requiring them to work longer than 40 hours without proper pay. This costly litigation is part of the motivation behind the effort to revamp the nation's overtime pay regulations. Attorneys who represent employers say that the overtime rules are outdated and result in frivolous lawsuits.
See "Workers filing record number of overtime suits", Kirstin Downey, Chicago Tribune, April 12, 2004