CWA Local 4319: DON'T BE CLOAKED IN DARKNESS!

Don’t' Be Cloaked in Darkness!
Open Your Eyes and See the Light!!

The United States is currently spending FOUR BILLION DOLLARS every month just to maintain our presence in Iraq. We are spending an additional 500 MILLION DOLLARS every month to maintain our presence in Afghanistan. All this while millions of American workers remain in unemployment lines, and even more Americans continue to struggle with no, or inadequate, health insurance. The numbers above do not even factor in the tens of billions of dollars that are being spent to rebuild Iraq and Afghanistan. All while citizens in our country stand in mile long lines at food banks to try and feed their families.

We could debate the pros and cons of our involvement in Iraq, but that should not be the focus of the debate. The deplorable state of the U.S. economy, unemployment at levels not experienced since the 50’s and GROWING EVERY DAY, the depletion of Social Security Reserves, the national debt and deficit both spiraling out of control, and a general disregard for middle class working Americans should be the content of that debate.

The truly sad part of all this is that many of the woes I mention are the direct result of a tremendous public giveaway to the rich in the form of an unnecessary tax cut. It is interesting to note that, that very tax cut is being funded by borrowing money. That’s right, we the people, are paying interest, with our taxes, to borrow money to fund the tax cut for the wealthy. You don’t have to be a mathematician to understand that this philosophy is ludicrous. This is one reason our future has changed. Four years ago we were on course to elimination of the national debt, and a balanced budget within ten years. George W Bush’s frivolous economic policies have eliminated that possibility and in fact have driven the debt to the highest level in history.

There is also a constant flow of new economic policies being touted by the White House and the Republican-controlled House and Senate that attack our pension distribution methods and makes it easier for corporations to meet pension obligations. How will it make it easier for business? By changing the current instrument used to determine interest rates used for pension calculations, from the thirty-year T-Bill, to Corporate Bond rates. Conclusion, lower lump sum distribution amounts to future retirees.

But the attacks don’t end there. Just how far does the Bush administration want to roll back the clock on workers' rights and benefits? All the way to 1938 - the year the Fair Labor Standards Act made the 40-hour workweek law, requiring employers to pay overtime to hourly workers who had to put in extra time. The Department of Labor is rewriting the rules on who is eligible for overtime, with the intent of taking overtime pay away from millions of workers. Broad changes in the language that spells out who's eligible for overtime will allow employers to exclude workers by classifying their jobs as executive, administrative, professional or sales. Even office assistants and retail clerks could be forced to work longer hours with no additional pay. If you make more than $22,000 a year, you're at risk.

The list of workers who will be affected is virtually endless. Police, firefighters and paramedics are on it. So are newspaper reporters, dental hygienists, many construction workers, technicians, truck drivers and countless others, including anyone with military training. Did you just risk your life for your country in Iraq? Your government's way of thanking you is to claim that you're now too highly trained to be eligible for overtime as a civilian. Virtually anyone who makes over $65,000 a year will lose overtime rights, regardless of job duties. And anyone whose job includes selling is at risk -- even customer service reps that are required to pitch a telecom service or product every time someone calls about billing problems or repairs. For those positions that don't quite fit the "ineligible" criteria, you can bet employers will tinker with job descriptions to take them off the overtime rolls.

"But I'm a union member," you say? "I've got a contract." Yes, right now you have a contract that guarantees overtime pay. But what happens the next time we're at the bargaining table and management claims they can't be competitive anymore against non-union companies that don't have to pay it. The FLSA was the floor -- the bare minimum at the bargaining table. Now that floor is about to drop out from under us.

Even if the administration's malicious efforts to turn the FLSA upside down don't affect us as union members, they will hurt people who aren't represented. And that may mean your spouse, your parents or kids, friends and neighbors. Everyone stands to lose, and we can't let that happen.

The AFL-CIO says workers, on average, take home $160 a week in overtime pay. That's thousands of dollars a year. Some families couldn't even pay their bills without the extra pay. Lots of you probably sock it away in college funds or save for vacations or house repairs. Imagine not having that money anymore -- but still having to work whatever hours the boss demands. Planning on going to your child's soccer game or school play? Want to have dinner with your family and help the kids with their homework? Forget it. Managers will no longer have any financial incentive to send you home on time. Of all the family-unfriendly tricks this White House has pulled with a straight face, this tops them all.

They talk about creating jobs? Under this nightmare plan, companies won't need to hire more workers to fill jobs. They'll have modern-day sweatshops where existing employees can be forced to work hours on end. That's what we're talking about. It really is that bad, that serious. This administration has savaged workers' rights and benefits at every turn while making their corporate friends even richer. But this time they've gone too far. Too many people are going to be hurt. Every one of us has to tell the administration, the Department of Labor and members of Congress that we won't stand for it, and we certainly won't forget it at election time.

Labor Day is just around the corner. I hope to see all of you and your families at the Labor Day Parade in downtown Toledo, or at the Annual Labor Day Union picnic immediately following at Olander Park in Sylvania. Have a safe and happy holiday.

In Solidarity,
Ron Honse

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E-mail us at: cwa4319@sbcglobal.net

Don’t' Be Cloaked in Darkness! Open Your Eyes and See the Light!!

Don’t' Be Cloaked in Darkness!
Open Your Eyes and See the Light!!