Friday, May 09, 2003
Are you tired, listless, do you poop out at parties? Call your House Representative and tell them to vote for the "Family Time Flexibility Act". You will get plenty of time to rest up. You'll have a lot less money, but plenty of time.
Leave it up to the "family friendly" Republican party to come up with this seductive solution, It's H. R. 1119, and it's called the "Family Time Flexibility Act". The House leadership, wants to pass it by Mother's Day as a gift to America's working women.
Here is how they worded this act. I love how they try an appeal to all the hard working people that still have jobs, and make it sound like we would be crazy not to support this legislation.
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FAMILY TIME OPTIONS FOR U.S. WORKERS
H.R. 1119 , Family Time Flexibility Act
Sponsor: Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL)
The Workforce Protections Subcommittee, chaired by Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-GA), has led efforts to modernize outdated workforce laws and is expected to move a bill early this year to give parents more flexibility to spend more time with their families. Republicans want American workers, particularly working mothers and fathers, to be able to choose to spend more time with their families, as most public sector workers are already allowed to do.
Working men and women find it increasingly difficult to balance family and work responsibilities, and unfortunately their employers are hampered by an outdated federal law in their attempts to accommodate worker requests for more family time and flexible work schedules. While flexible work schedules have been available to public sector workers for years, private sector employees are denied these benefits because of an outdated 1938 law that does not meet the needs of workers in today's economy.
To address this problem, Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL) reintroduced H.R. 1119, the Family Time Flexibility Act, legislation that offers a workable solution to this problem for both employers and workers who are attempting to balance work and family responsibilities. The bill removes obstacles in federal law that prevent many employers from providing hourly paid workers increased flexibility to spend time with family, attend teacher conferences, care for an ill relative, extend maternity and paternity leave, or other family needs that may arise.
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My concern is that men and women workers that still work, are so tired from working a full time job and working at home, they will never realize what Republicans are trying to do; and jump at anything that promises flexibility." I saw how well Bush sold the invasion of Iraq, so now I have reasonable doubt that anyone will really notice this one.
So what's wrong with such flexibility?
Most of us really want flexible work hours but this bill, with its advertised illusion of flexibility, would eliminate, one of the fundamental rights enacted by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, a 40-hour workweek and time-and-a half PAY FOR OVERTIME!
Under the Family Time Flexibility Act, an employer can decide to reimburse you for overtime with compensatory (COMP) TIME, RATHER THAN with PAY. So, if you work eight extra hours, your boss can give you 12 hours of comp time, which you can use or cash out sometime in the next 13 months, at the employer's convenience, whenever they think they can do without you. "So Jimmy, take your one week off next February and one week and a half at the end of March."Make sure you enter that into your schedule." This is great if you are management, but it is going to suck if you are not.
Is this how Republican's deal with a poor economy and lack of employment?
Many low-wage, hourly workers simply cannot live without the extra money they earn working overtime. Do you think employers may discriminate against employees who insist on overtime pay rather than comp time? For these low-wage workers, says Rep. John F. Tierney, D-Mass., the result will be "less time for their families and less income to support those families."
If you don't get that second job, to support the effects of this act, you will have the flexibility of sitting at home spending quality time with your spouse, watching your bills pile up.
Don't you just love it when a group of people just love kicking you when you are down and out? Thank you Rep. Judy Biggert, may I have another!
Sources cited:
Committee on Education and the Workforce U.S. House of Representatives
San Francisco Chronicle.
Leave it up to the "family friendly" Republican party to come up with this seductive solution, It's H. R. 1119, and it's called the "Family Time Flexibility Act". The House leadership, wants to pass it by Mother's Day as a gift to America's working women.
Here is how they worded this act. I love how they try an appeal to all the hard working people that still have jobs, and make it sound like we would be crazy not to support this legislation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FAMILY TIME OPTIONS FOR U.S. WORKERS
H.R. 1119 , Family Time Flexibility Act
Sponsor: Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL)
The Workforce Protections Subcommittee, chaired by Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-GA), has led efforts to modernize outdated workforce laws and is expected to move a bill early this year to give parents more flexibility to spend more time with their families. Republicans want American workers, particularly working mothers and fathers, to be able to choose to spend more time with their families, as most public sector workers are already allowed to do.
Working men and women find it increasingly difficult to balance family and work responsibilities, and unfortunately their employers are hampered by an outdated federal law in their attempts to accommodate worker requests for more family time and flexible work schedules. While flexible work schedules have been available to public sector workers for years, private sector employees are denied these benefits because of an outdated 1938 law that does not meet the needs of workers in today's economy.
To address this problem, Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL) reintroduced H.R. 1119, the Family Time Flexibility Act, legislation that offers a workable solution to this problem for both employers and workers who are attempting to balance work and family responsibilities. The bill removes obstacles in federal law that prevent many employers from providing hourly paid workers increased flexibility to spend time with family, attend teacher conferences, care for an ill relative, extend maternity and paternity leave, or other family needs that may arise.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My concern is that men and women workers that still work, are so tired from working a full time job and working at home, they will never realize what Republicans are trying to do; and jump at anything that promises flexibility." I saw how well Bush sold the invasion of Iraq, so now I have reasonable doubt that anyone will really notice this one.
So what's wrong with such flexibility?
Most of us really want flexible work hours but this bill, with its advertised illusion of flexibility, would eliminate, one of the fundamental rights enacted by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, a 40-hour workweek and time-and-a half PAY FOR OVERTIME!
Under the Family Time Flexibility Act, an employer can decide to reimburse you for overtime with compensatory (COMP) TIME, RATHER THAN with PAY. So, if you work eight extra hours, your boss can give you 12 hours of comp time, which you can use or cash out sometime in the next 13 months, at the employer's convenience, whenever they think they can do without you. "So Jimmy, take your one week off next February and one week and a half at the end of March."Make sure you enter that into your schedule." This is great if you are management, but it is going to suck if you are not.
Is this how Republican's deal with a poor economy and lack of employment?
Many low-wage, hourly workers simply cannot live without the extra money they earn working overtime. Do you think employers may discriminate against employees who insist on overtime pay rather than comp time? For these low-wage workers, says Rep. John F. Tierney, D-Mass., the result will be "less time for their families and less income to support those families."
If you don't get that second job, to support the effects of this act, you will have the flexibility of sitting at home spending quality time with your spouse, watching your bills pile up.
Don't you just love it when a group of people just love kicking you when you are down and out? Thank you Rep. Judy Biggert, may I have another!
Sources cited:
Committee on Education and the Workforce U.S. House of Representatives
San Francisco Chronicle.
# posted by Thomas @ 12:10 AM 
