Republican/Democratic Senators introduce bill to end overtime pay for computer and web workers!

[Better Believe It]

Corporations Pushing Bill to Take Away Overtime from Computer and Web Workers
by Adele Stan
November 10, 2011

Apparently unsatisfied by the enormous profits they’ve made while average Americans suffer in a difficult economy, corporations are pushing Congress to enact a new law that would exempt a large class of workers from receiving overtime pay. And they’re receiving support from members of both parties on Capitol Hill.

Dubbed the Computer Professionals Update Act (CPU Act), Senate bill 1747 would change the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to remove overtime protection and compensation from “almost everyone working primarily in information technology” who earns either a salary, or an hourly rate of $27.63, according to Paul E. Almeida, president of the AFL-CIO Department for Professional Employees (DPE).

Information technology companies are focused on cutting pay for the people who work for them. If their effort succeeds, however, it will suggest to every other industry that the time is now to gut FLSA for every covered private-sector worker.

Introduced in the U.S. Senate last month by Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), the CPU Act has found a Democratic co-sponsor in Sen. Michael Bennet (Colo.), who is joined by two Republican co-sponsors, Sens. Mike Enzi (Wy.) and Johnny Isakson (Ga.).

Read the full article at:

http://blog.aflcio.org/2011/11/10/corporations-pushing-bill-to-take-away-overtime-from-computer-and-web-workers/

[Xipe Totec]

1. Aren't CEOs, CFOs, and CIOs essentially information workers?

I mean they essentially process information and produce nothing....

[justiceischeap]

2. F*ckers! That's my industry.

How can they even get away with that?

[Better Believe It]

7. If the House and Senate pass this legislation President Obama has the power to stop it.

He can use the veto pen.

[justiceischeap]

9. If this bill gets that far and he doesn't veto it, he'll not get my vote in 2012. nt

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

3. Kay Hagan is a Dino

[valerief]

5. Obviously. nt

[Lost-in-FL]

12. You think? nt

[valerief]

4. It doesn't matter. They're shipping all the jobs to India and China anyway. nt

[The Backlash Cometh]

6. WTF?

[Autumn]

8. Michael Bennet is an A hole

of course he would do this.

[Scruffy1]

10. This actually means that the overtime would be less than straight time.

One reason businesses work their employees overtime is that it's cheaper and more flexible than hiring more employees. Of course benefits are based on the forty hour work week in the case of health insurance, holidays, sick leave, and some pension plans. So, in reality, the difference to the company between the overtime rate and straight time rate is negligible.

With this proposal employees would be receiving less per hour than straight time. In my case my benefits work out to over eight dollars an hour. The question is who is paying off Hagan and Bennet.

[Better Believe It]

11. Good point. I hadn't considered that. Thanks.

[Lost-in-FL]

15. Good point.

Would it force companies to hire more employees?

My job used to do that until recently. They were trying to get away with having less than the needed staff by paying overtime to those that volunteered or by paying part-timers to do the job. Now because of safety regulations they were practically forced to full-timers. The good news is that we have more people, the bad… going to work now is like walking on eggshells.

[pinto]

13. Clarification note - 1 Democratic co-sponsor on this. Bill referred to Committee, where it will die

"Introduced in the U.S. Senate last month by Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), the CPU Act has found a Democratic co-sponsor in Sen. Michael Bennet (Colo.), who is joined by two Republican co-sponsors, Sens. Mike Enzi (Wy.) and Johnny Isakson (Ga.)."

****************************************

S.1747: A bill to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to modify provisions relating to the exemption for computer systems analysts, computer programmers, software engineers, or other similarly skilled workers.

Sponsor: Kay Hagan, D-NC
Cosponsors: 3
Introduced: October 20, 2011
Committees: Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation

Categories

Computers and information technology
Wages and earnings
Labor and employment
Labor standards

Bill Actions

Last Action Oct. 19, 2011 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/bills/112/s1747

[Better Believe It]

17. So the AFL-CIO legislative department is mistaken? If so, what exactly are they wrong about?

They usually don't post lead articles on legislation they believe is dead.

[pinto]

21. No, don't think they are. Just the follow-up is missing in this piece. It's a good heads up.

The reality, imho - bills with a few co-sponsors get introduced all the time and referred to Committee. That's where they live or die. Here there's three, along with Hagan.

Actually, this is a good example to support a broad, viable Democratic "firewall" in the Senate to re-look at proposed legislation and ensure that bad proposals don't see the light of day - i.e. the Senate floor.

I think the AFL-CIO could be more effective in using this proposal as a teaching tool on the value of a pro-labor bloc, a firewall, in the Senate. And as a rallying cry to increase Democratic seats in the body, as well as in the House.

Our margin in the Senate is slim and we face an extremist run House. That's the big picture, in my point of view.

That said, I think the AFL-CIO gets it. One blogger's opinion piece on their website is just that.

When election time rolls around the AFL-CIO will be with the big picture.

[ohheckyeah]

14. What the American

voters really need to do is quit sending money to politicians, but instead raise money and hire lobbyists.

[Lost-in-FL]

16. +1, nt.

[woo me with science]

18. Well of course they do.

Everybody awake yet?

[CreekDog]

19. Nonstarter, the bill is sponsored by 3 Republicans and 1 Democrat

:eyes:

[Better Believe It]

20. You're mistaken. The bill is sponsored by 2 Democrats and 2 Republicans

Introduced in the U.S. Senate last month by Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), the CPU Act has found a Democratic co-sponsor in Sen. Michael Bennet (Colo.), who is joined by two Republican co-sponsors, Sens. Mike Enzi (Wy.) and Johnny Isakson (Ga.).

And the AFL-CIO doesn't usually campaign against legislation that is dead.

[CreekDog]

22. Tsk tsk a list that has Kay Hagen and Michael Bennett equaling 2 Democrats is wrong

silly goose! :rofl:

maybe 1 and a half! :P

[Better Believe It]

24. I didn't catch your humor! So would you say there are about 15 or so Democrats in the Senate?

Give or take 15.

:)

[CreekDog]

25. 20

to qualify, you have to hate Al From.

[SoCalNative]

23. If this passed

then I would refuse to work one minute more than my scheduled hours.

Fuck them.