The Republican Congressional majority - along with the horde of Big Business lobbyists - are meeting fierce resistance in their attempts to repeal overtime pay. Working people from coast-to-coast have unleashed a barrage of phone calls, letters, and e-mails on lawmakers, demanding that they cease their attempts to gut the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by passing the so-called “comp-time” bills. And, in addition to the legislative attack on the FLSA on Capitol Hill, the Bush Administration has initiated administrative changes that will ultimately deny overtime pay to millions of workers and professionals in the retail, sales, and computer industries.
UE General Secretary-Treasurer Bruce Klipple is asking all UE Locals and members to step-up their efforts to block the overtime repeal legislation. “Now is the time for all UE members to contact their U.S. Representative and both Senators, telling them to stop this greed-driven assault on working people. And remember that more is on the line here than just overtime pay; bosses would like nothing more than to be able to force workers to “earn” their vacation and sick leave through the comp-time device. Workers would be forced to bank “comp-time” and then be denied unemployment benefits when layoffs occur, since they would be using up “comp-time” while in reality on layoff. This legislation is a disgrace and must be stopped. Do your part TODAY to contact your lawmakers and stop this legislation in its tracks” said Klipple.
The Republican Congressional majority has indicated that their initial plan to push for an overtime repeal bill vote by Mothers Day may not be possible due to the tidal wave of resistance. For detailed information on the bills, as well as information on how to contact your lawmakers, visit the previous Political Action update on this web page entitled “Iraq War Hides Attack on Overtime Pay.”