Military stint may cost Boeing workers overtime

[Judi Lynn]

Thursday, January 29, 2004 - Page updated at 12:00 A.M.

Military stint may cost Boeing workers overtime

By Kirstin Downey
The Washington Post



WASHINGTON — Some companies plan to take advantage of changes in the nation's overtime-pay rules by using their workers' military training as a way to exempt them from the extra pay.

Boeing, the nation's largest aircraft manufacturer, wrote the Labor Department in June, saying it "strongly supports" the revisions, particularly one that would classify employees who had received military training as "learned experts" who could lose access to overtime pay.

"Boeing observes that many of its most skilled technical workers received a significant portion of their knowledge and training outside the university classroom, typically in a branch of the military service, where through a combination of classroom training and field experience they become 'learned experts' on very sophisticated aerospace products or services," wrote Cheryl Russell, Boeing's director of federal affairs. "Boeing thus supports the department's focus on the knowledge used by the employee in performing her job, rather than the source of the knowledge or skill."

The overtime-pay revisions have become a contentious political issue in recent weeks, with Democrats in Congress saying they will cost millions of workers extra compensation. Under federal law, workers who are "learned professionals" are presumed to have control of their own time and are exempt from receiving overtime pay. In proposing changes in the rules last spring, the department said in the Federal Register that "the exemption is also available to employees in such professions who have substantially the same knowledge as the degreed employees, but who have attained such knowledge through a combination of work experience, training in the armed forces, attending a technical school, attending a community college or other intellectual instruction."
(snip/...)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2001846134_overtime30.html

[JackDragna]

1. Watch the U.S. continue the free fall to the bottom.

Corporations once had the idea that well-paid workers were motivated to succeed and prove they were worth the coin they earned. Now, corporations cut salaries and benefits, work their employees to the bone and pay their CEO's inflated salaries. Welcome to the second coming of robber baron capitalism, America.

[daleo]

2. Burger flippers will be classed as "learned professionals"

Give it a little time, after all many went to Hamburger University. Others learned directly from these graduates, so now they too are learned professionals.

Another slap in the face to veterans - join the military and lose any chance of overtime pay for life.

"workers who are "learned professionals" are presumed to have control of their own time" - that's a knee slapper, too.

[KamaAina]

3. Way to support our troops, guys

while you grow fat off military contracts, and shovel your ill-gotten gains from this misbegotten policy straight to the RNC.

:puke: :puke: :puke:

[KansDem]

4. Say "so long" to continuing education...

"the exemption is also available to employees in such professions who have substantially the same knowledge as the degreed employees, but who have attained such knowledge through a combination of work experience, training in the armed forces, attending a technical school, attending a community college or other intellectual instruction."

Let's go back to school, invest time, energy, and $$$, and break even! What we gain in salaries/wages we lose in OT pay!

[Fovea]

5. Am I the only one who thinks that labor relations in America

are going to be a very ugly, violent thing as long as this legislation persists.

[Pale_Rider]

6. As long as 'learned professionals' ...

... are compensated the same as their degreed "exempt" colleagues, then there is no issue. In good (key word and subject to interpretation) companies, there are other forms of compensation (profit sharing, bonuses, stock options, vacation, sick time, training opportunities etc.) that make up for the lost of OT.

[reprobate]

7. It's called Preditory Capitalism

Once again the Law of the Jungle.

[Bozita]

8. Boeing's workers are union members, aren't they?

If so, the terms of the contract dictate wages, hours, and working conditions.

Dumbya can't touch them.

But watch what happens to non-union workers.