DNC: Veterans feel the sting of Bush's overtime pay cut -- are you next?

Democratic National Committee ^ | 1/30/04 | DNC E-mail

[CSM]

Dear Friend,

President Bush is taking overtime pay away from millions of Americans who rely on it to make ends meet, and veterans will be among the first victims of the new rules.

The new regulations will allow employers to define some military training as equivalent to a four-year degree and declare their veteran employees ineligible for overtime pay.

That's President Bush's program for those who join the military: drop into a war zone, risk your life for your country, then come home to find you aren't eligible for overtime pay.

Bush's overtime outrage is a devastating attack on families, too.

The reductions in pay and longer hours that will inevitably come with losing overtime will be a strain on the families already struggling with the rising health care costs, lower job security, and other effects of Bush's failed economic policies.

Take Action! There's still time to fight. President Bush is planning to cut overtime benefits for 8 million Americans this March, but you can help stop him.

[CSM]

Yes, I get their e-mails. I can't wait to vote for Dean in the Primary! Yeeeeeeeaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgh!

[Fishing-guy]

I don't know what is going on, but Bush seems to be working overtime to lose his re-election.

[Coop]

You actually believe this, do you?

[bushfamfan]

Remember, this is from the DNC. I agree it looks like President Bush is trying to lose the election with the amnesty bill, inrease to the NEA now and increased gov't overall, but this overtime pay thing-what's the story? The DNC is a lying machine.

[mystery-ak]

I just amazes me how the DNC cares about the military all of a sudden....being an Army wife, where were they in the 90's when my husband and his unit were cannibalizing their own choppers.

[RebelBanker]

This appears to be about a technical change to government regulations concerning definitions of legal requirements to differentiate salaried ("exempt") and hourly ("non-exempt") employees.

In plain English, the President wants to make it easier for employers to pay workers a flat salary rather than an hourly rate. This makes life a lot easier for the finance and personnel departments at these companies.

[onyx]

Try reading the damn thing before you embarrass yourself with an ignorant comment.

The new regulations will allow employers to define some military training as equivalent to a four-year degree and declare their veteran employees ineligible for overtime pay.

The vast majority of folks with a four-year-degree are not hourly-paid workers. They're management.

[olliemb]

Help---

the democrats say that the overtime has been taken away while the repubs say that overtime for the lower pay person goes up. Anybody out there that truly understands the overtime bill?

[gatorbait]

We are getting ready to go into pay bands , in fact.looks like wha we'll get is a raise, not huge, but a raise. Overtime is a pain in the butt to calculate and yet we'll still get it for certain circumstances. Whichever jackass wrote this article needs to go back to the sixth grade for remidial math and vocabulary, and the individual who believed this, needs a common sense injection.

[discostu]

The overtime changes were one of the first things he did, and they're actually quite minimal, but a group of Democrats desperate for issues keep resurrecting this horse. It didn't help them in 02 it won't help them now.

[11th_VA]

the democrats say that the overtime has been taken away while the repubs say that overtime for the lower pay person goes up. Anybody out there that truly understands the overtime bill?

They're both right in a sense - some jobs now requiring overtime (including Nurses) may soon loose their legal standing to get overtime, and alot of lower wage workers will now qualify for time and a half for overtime - that's my understanding of all the demagoging ...

[onyx]

I knew you'd know the truth.

[familyofman]

"The vast majority of folks with a four-year-degree are not hourly-paid workers. They're management."

Used to be management before outsourcing and illegal aliens, now they're Wal-Mart greeters or burger flippers.

[cake_crumb]

The DNC is the source....DEBKA is 1000 percent more reliable.

[CalKat]

Don't you think it will also affect the take home pay of hourly workers who, under the current laws, make overtime pay?

[XJarhead]

How can veterans "feel the sting" already when the new regulations don't even take effect until March? Is it possible that the DNC would actually misrepresent the facts in order to make a political point?

[gatorbait]

Used to be management before outsourcing and illegal aliens, now they're Wal-Mart greeters or burger flippers

I can hear the jealousy in your post since you're underqualified. xin loi.

[taxcontrol]

I have not be eligible for overtime pay for YEARS. Why should I be made to not have overtime pay? Just because I make six figure, come on, what happened to the 14th Amendment?

/sarcasm

[dakine]

My wife is already in that pay band system...I am still confused by it when she describes it, do know she is getting a nice bonus next month...

[cake_crumb]

In other words, this is simple, flat out hysteria mongering. On the other hand big unions are highly unhappy with any such proposal.