New overtime law and how it's being distorted
Here’s the promised US-centric post: overtime pay! Well, it’s not as much about overtime pay as it is about misinformation and plain old lies that politicians are famous for.
Let’s start with a John Edwards (absolutely no relation to me, by the way) quote: “Today, millions of workers will find out that instead of getting time-and-a-half, they're going to get a hard time from their government… More than 60 years of protecting overtime work have been wiped out with the stroke of this president's pen.” source.
Of course, what Kerry/Edwards speech could be complete without a nice Bush-bashing? “Taking away the right to overtime pay and doing nothing while paychecks shrink and jobs go overseas makes sense only to someone who does not understand American values and does not respect what work means in this country,” (from the same source).
Now, there is something to this story other than the Kerry/Edwards speeches. No, it’s not a moveon.org ad, and it has nothing to do with Vietnam.
It’s (dramatic pause) the facts! Those pesky, oft-forgotten little things that most politicians try to ignore. But, it’s now time to delve into a few of them, in a friendly question-and-answer format.
Q: just how many people will be affected by these changes?
A: According to the administration (Bush and his friends), 107,000 workers will no longer have guaranteed overtime, while 1.3 million workers can be assured of overtime pay. Source: the New York Times. On the other hand, a liberal ‘think-tank’, which may be suffering from the same “group think” that plagued the CIA and FBI, claims up to 6 million people may lose overtime.
Q: What new qualifications have been set for overtime pay?
A: First off, everyone who earns an hourly wage receives overtime protection. In addition, salaried employees who make less than $23,600 per year should qualify for overtime pay, while salaried employees who make more that $100,000 per year get no overtime. Overtime provisions written in union collective bargaining agreements are also protected. For people who earn between $23,600 and $100,000, it all depends on your job description, because the government will match up your job description with a recently revised government-made description to see if you qualify. Source: South Bend Tribune, which seems to have decent stories, though this is the first time I’ve ever heard of it.
Q: I love to read government documents that are as boring as tax code. Do you have any source like that?
A: sadly, yes. You can go here for an official site.
Q: your style of both asking and answering the questions is freaking me out a bit. Can you go back to a more common, less multiple-personality-disorder-ish style?
A: Sure
I don’t quite know what John Edwards is complaining about, since the earlier version of this law guaranteed overtime for workers who earn less than $8,060 per year, as was set in the 70’s. In addition, democrats complained that Bush was giving more money to “the rich”, who democrats defined as people earning more than $100,000 per year.
Now, here’s a pleasant statement from the Bush side (Matt McDonald, quoted from my first source), “The only loser under this reform is the trial lawyers who have created an overtime lawsuit industry that costs our economy $2 billion per year”. Of course, this statement has its healthy counterdose of Kerry-Edwards bashing, because Edwards earned a few tens of millions as a trial lawyer.
Let’s start with a John Edwards (absolutely no relation to me, by the way) quote: “Today, millions of workers will find out that instead of getting time-and-a-half, they're going to get a hard time from their government… More than 60 years of protecting overtime work have been wiped out with the stroke of this president's pen.” source.
Of course, what Kerry/Edwards speech could be complete without a nice Bush-bashing? “Taking away the right to overtime pay and doing nothing while paychecks shrink and jobs go overseas makes sense only to someone who does not understand American values and does not respect what work means in this country,” (from the same source).
Now, there is something to this story other than the Kerry/Edwards speeches. No, it’s not a moveon.org ad, and it has nothing to do with Vietnam.
It’s (dramatic pause) the facts! Those pesky, oft-forgotten little things that most politicians try to ignore. But, it’s now time to delve into a few of them, in a friendly question-and-answer format.
Q: just how many people will be affected by these changes?
A: According to the administration (Bush and his friends), 107,000 workers will no longer have guaranteed overtime, while 1.3 million workers can be assured of overtime pay. Source: the New York Times. On the other hand, a liberal ‘think-tank’, which may be suffering from the same “group think” that plagued the CIA and FBI, claims up to 6 million people may lose overtime.
Q: What new qualifications have been set for overtime pay?
A: First off, everyone who earns an hourly wage receives overtime protection. In addition, salaried employees who make less than $23,600 per year should qualify for overtime pay, while salaried employees who make more that $100,000 per year get no overtime. Overtime provisions written in union collective bargaining agreements are also protected. For people who earn between $23,600 and $100,000, it all depends on your job description, because the government will match up your job description with a recently revised government-made description to see if you qualify. Source: South Bend Tribune, which seems to have decent stories, though this is the first time I’ve ever heard of it.
Q: I love to read government documents that are as boring as tax code. Do you have any source like that?
A: sadly, yes. You can go here for an official site.
Q: your style of both asking and answering the questions is freaking me out a bit. Can you go back to a more common, less multiple-personality-disorder-ish style?
A: Sure
I don’t quite know what John Edwards is complaining about, since the earlier version of this law guaranteed overtime for workers who earn less than $8,060 per year, as was set in the 70’s. In addition, democrats complained that Bush was giving more money to “the rich”, who democrats defined as people earning more than $100,000 per year.
Now, here’s a pleasant statement from the Bush side (Matt McDonald, quoted from my first source), “The only loser under this reform is the trial lawyers who have created an overtime lawsuit industry that costs our economy $2 billion per year”. Of course, this statement has its healthy counterdose of Kerry-Edwards bashing, because Edwards earned a few tens of millions as a trial lawyer.
posted by Chris at
4:40 PM
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