Slashdot Mirror
Who Owns Your Overtime?
HughPickens.com writes: Fran Sussner Rodgers writes in the NY Times that a little-noticed change in the American workplace is about to occur. Later this month the Department of Labor is expected to announce an adjustment to the Fair Labor Standards Act raising the salary threshold for overtime from $23,660 per year to at least double that threshold. In 1975, the last year the threshold was significantly raised, 60 percent of salaried workers fell within the requirement for overtime pay while today, only 8 percent do. The new requirement should be a welcome change for millions of American workers.
But the change also speaks to an issue that affects everyone, whether eligible for overtime or not — the clash between the finite amount of time employees actually have versus the desire of employers to treat time as an inexhaustible resource. Employees in the United States currently work more hours than workers in any of the world's 10 largest economies except Russia. When everything over 40 hours is free to the employer, the temptation to demand more is almost irresistible. But for most employees, the ones exempt from overtime rules, their managers have little incentive to look for ways to use their time more efficiently. "We are a tired, stressed and overworked nation, which has many negative consequences for our personal health and the care of our children. As a nation, we work harder and longer than almost all of our competitors, and much of that work is uncompensated," writes Rodgers. "Time is our personal currency. We parcel it out, hour by hour, to meet the demands placed on us. We all pay a steep price, as individuals and as a nation, when we can't meet our most important obligations."
But the change also speaks to an issue that affects everyone, whether eligible for overtime or not — the clash between the finite amount of time employees actually have versus the desire of employers to treat time as an inexhaustible resource. Employees in the United States currently work more hours than workers in any of the world's 10 largest economies except Russia. When everything over 40 hours is free to the employer, the temptation to demand more is almost irresistible. But for most employees, the ones exempt from overtime rules, their managers have little incentive to look for ways to use their time more efficiently. "We are a tired, stressed and overworked nation, which has many negative consequences for our personal health and the care of our children. As a nation, we work harder and longer than almost all of our competitors, and much of that work is uncompensated," writes Rodgers. "Time is our personal currency. We parcel it out, hour by hour, to meet the demands placed on us. We all pay a steep price, as individuals and as a nation, when we can't meet our most important obligations."
Save money, as much as you can. Then tell your employers NO. No pager, no cell phone, no email, no overtime, no working late. Leave that as the legacy to your kids. The MBAs want to leave the piles of money they steal for other workers as their legacy to their kids. Don't leave your kids workplaces of fear and intimidation. Show these companies that they don't own you.
I remember when I lived in the States. It was the life of a slave. Working, working and more working. I was in a bilingual position in a school (it was a job exchange program between my country and USA).
One day, the principal gathered all the teachers and said:
"We have decided to help our students by giving them one hour more of tutoring classes after your (very long) school hours. These additional hours are strictly voluntary and they won't be paid. But please do it for the kids!"
Being a foreigner, I thought that everybody was going to reject such a clear exploitation. But all the teachers reacted with enthusiasm:
"Yes! We'll do it for the kids! For the kids!"
I said no and everybody look at me with hostility. Afterwards, I realized that I had tenure in my home country and was able to say no. All the American teachers could say no but the principal could fire them with no reason at all. Hence, they did anything that the principal said.
I went back to my home country and keep on working in my high school and, afterwards, in the government and the World Bank. I never worked as much as worked in the States (and the salary was not good).
Wow, sounds like a sucky culture in the USA.
I employ >50 (Australia: including >10 engineers) and I don't expect anyone to work more than 40 hours.
Sure, I could be richer if I flogged my salaried staff, but life is more than about work.
46137
Americans, for the most part, have bought into the "American Dream". Whatever it was before, the American Dream is now:
It's not might, it's not could, it's will. Despite the fact that anyone can look around them and see it's not true, they've bought into this idea that working long hours, for free, will rocket them up the chain into power and money, and then they can work short weeks and command others to work long weeks. It's the same reason that ~50% of America keeps voting for Republicans who promise tax cuts (for the rich) and end to subsidies (for the poor), even when those same voters don't benefit from the tax cuts and would be hurt by loss of those subsidies.
And, on top of that, the promises pit those voter against themselves: if you don't do your expected 80hrs/week, the other guy might, and then he'll become rich and powerful. And who will you have to blame if that happens? That's right, no one but yourself.
We have this weird lust for capitalism, making excuses when it beats us down. "Oh, that's out of love. Capitalism knows we need to hurt in order to get better." The outcome of this is profits > people, even when someone who seriously spouts such nonsense is harmed by the very policies. Because, in the end, we're told that we're just temporarily embarrassed millionaires, and we're willing to hurt ourselves in the present if we can benefit from those same policies in the future.
I think that America has immense potential, but at the moment the majority of us are stupid crazy.
2) News flash, most industries have competition "across the street", yet they still manage to train their employees. The trick is to ALSO pay them a decent wage. If it's worth it for the competition to hire them out from under you, then you're under-paying them. Training isn't a form of compensation, it's a capital investment that also incurs maintenance expenses.
The job market is a big place, and there's probably only a handful of jobs that demand all the skills you require. Why should I spend MY precious time training for your job, when that job will filled long before my training is complete?
--- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
Also known as "meetings".