Jul. 11, 2003 - 14:43 MDT

THE WONDERING JEW

Every Time

It seems to me to be outrageous what Bush and Republican leaders in Congress at the behest of big business are trying to do now --- which by the way seems to be a done dog.

Of course there is the usual conflict of numbers from both sides and there is some agreement of part of the dastardly plan.

Headlines "House vote paves way for new overtime rules," article by Alan Fram of the Associated Press.

"The House voted Thursday to let the Bush administration move ahead with proposed rules that could stop at least 644,000 white-collar workers from receiving overtime pay, heeding a White House veto threat and taking the side of business in its battle against unions."

The bait and switch is that as the article says, "The proposed rules would require overtime for as many as 1.3 million additional low-income workers when they work more than 40 hours a week."

Democrats don't oppose that provision - nor should they I believe. But I don't think that it gives them the right to mess over any white collar workers who now are protected by the 40 hour week, time and a half for overtime.

It says in the article that, AFL -CIO President John Sweeney said the administration effort showed "A callous disregard for the millions of workers who depend on that extra income to make ends meet".

OF course the administration puts the spin on it, "Today's action is a victory for workers and employers alike," Labor Secretary Elaine Chao said in a statement thanking supporters for a "very courageous and principled vote."

Probably the sweetest thing I could say is that the administration is, in a way robbing Peter to pay Paul. Allowing the lower income workers to come under the provisions of the 40 hour week is a something that those people should have been granted long, long ago. The fight to achieve a 40 hour work week was a long and bloody battle for many folk who had been slaving six days a week, twelve hours a day. Paying time and a half for overtime after 40 hours has been about the only way to keep abusive work schedules from being imposed the average working Joe.

In recent years white collar workers have seen the injustice of the 6 day week at 50 or 60 hours that they have had to work under for years and began to unionize. Hell, they are people too and just as subject to burn out and deprivation of being with family a decent number of hours. Big business has taken advantage of white collar workers by selling them the idea that they are above the blue collar folk and their pay (little as it is) is much higher than that of the blue collar workers.

Makes me remember the assistant chief engineer of the power plant where I worked telling me one time, "Sure, I can have the use of the company pickup all the time, and can go get a hair cut in the middle of the day. But remember, when I get called into the plant on an emergency, I get not one red cent of overtime pay. Also remember that if you have 8 hours of overtime in a pay period you are making more money than I do." Of course he was classified as management so didn't deserve any extra for extra effort and hours --- heh.

To my way of thinking anyone who doesn't have the say so on policy, hire, fire or whatever should work 40 hours a week with time and a half pay for anything over that. Damn, even the supervisors on the floor of the factory I worked were just white shirted peons -- between the devil and the big boss. No matter which way things went they were the scapegoats --- but they didn't ever get time and a half for anything.

I do think that if a 40 week with time and a half pay for over that (including time and a half for anything worked in a day over 8 hours) were mandatory nationwide for everyone in the business world and public and governmental employees too, there would be a rapid reassessment of work scheduling and a hell of a big push by business biggies to force part time, no benefit workers into the work force. Something that big business has been trying to do and in some cases succeeding in doing for years (heck you can work three part timers for the pay of one union worker) -- or -- they will ship more and more work across the border or overseas. One way or another they are pushing the average man to the level of what was once said many years ago, something like, "The average man lives a life of quiet desperation."

Makes me chuckle when I imagine the chairmen of the board of the biggies actually increasing the hours they productively work and taking huge wage cuts --to the point that they could only afford one top model Mercedes a year instead of a fleet. Or imagine those biggies just taking straight salary rather than all those ridiculous bonuses and golden parachutes.

From all angles I think we should get down to realities in our country, all of us from bottom to top, "A fair days work, done well and cheerfully, on time for a days pay."

I can easily see that added responsibility and ability above and beyond should be paid at a higher rate than "ordinary" white or blue collar workers are. But I also think that those upper echelon types should work at the top of their abilities for those full days too.

But I think that no matter what, the administration and big business will screw up the system and mess up the average working (soon to be homeless) Joe --- they'll do it Every Time . . . . . . . . . . . .

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