You can't fool moms!

My preschooler jelly beans tried to convince her dad and me that jellybeans are actually vegetables and therefore are an “anytime” food. Nice try, but moms are not so easily fooled.

Jellybean-loving preschoolers aren’t the only ones trying to fool parents. The deceptively named “Working Families Flexibility Act (H.R. 1406) sounds good, but in reality is anything but. If passed it would mean a pay cut for workers and less – not more – workplace flexibility.

Tell Congress: Working parents aren’t fooled. Vote NO on H.R. 1406!

Sign Today!

Dear Members of Congress,

In these tough economic times, rather than attempting to gut the Fair Labor Standards Act and weaken overtime protections, we need Congress to focus on passing meaningful reforms like the Healthy Families Act (H.R. 1286/S. 631). Passing the Healthy Families Act would provide workers the right to earn up to seven paid sick days each year so that mothers and fathers, spouses and partners, sons and daughters can take the time they need, when they need it, to provide the basic care their loved ones need, and to take care of themselves when illness strikes or medical needs arise.

The "Working Families Flexibility Act" is a great name for a bad bill. Please vote against this bill and focus on policies like the Healthy Families Act, which will actually strengthen our nation.

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Subject: Jelly beans aren't vegetables! Your message to friends:

Hi! I just took action with MomsRising urging my member of Congress to vote NO on HR 1406 - a bill that will weaken overtime protections! I knew you'd want to take action too. Read below for all the info!
- Friend

=========== Original Message ============

My preschooler knows that vegetables are an “anytime” food and sweets are “sometimes” food. So, recently she tried to convince her dad and me that jelly beans are actually vegetables and therefore are an “anytime” food. Nice try kiddo, and bonus points for the imagination and conviction, but moms are not so easily fooled.

Jelly bean-loving preschoolers aren’t the only ones trying to fool parents. The deceptively named “Working Families Flexibility Act (H.R. 1406) -- headed to the House floor for a vote next week -- certainly sounds good, but in reality is anything but. If passed it would mean a pay cut for workers and less – not more – workplace flexibility. [1]

This bill will be voted on next week so we need to act now to tell Congress: Working parents aren’t fooled. Vote NO on H.R. 1406!

http://action.momsrising.org/sign/making_life_worse/?source=taf

What’s happening?

The "comp time” bill claims to give hourly workers more time with their families by allowing them, through an agreement with their employers, to choose paid time off as compensation for working more than 40 hours in a week.

In reality, the bill would weaken a 75-year-old overtime law and permit employers to demand more hours from their employees without any guarantee that the comp time employees earn would be available when they need it most. [2]

For example, there is no guarantee that a mother who works extra hours this week will be able to take that time next week if her daughter comes down with the flu or if she needs to attend a parent-teacher conference, or that an expecting mother will be able to use accrued comp time as parental leave when her child is born even if she’s worked enough overtime to save for an extended leave.

Virtually all employees need time off; people need time away from work to care for their loved ones and themselves. But this proposal is misguided and problematic:

Workers who prefer overtime pay to comp time could see their hours – and their potential to accrue overtime pay – cut because employers will save costs by giving extra hours and shifts to workers who accept comp time in lieu of overtime pay.
Employees who earn comp time have no guarantee that they will be able to use it when they need it, because employers can veto employees’ requests to use accrued comp time anytime they feel the employee’s absence will “unduly disrupt” the employer’s business – even if the request is for an urgent need like caring for a sick kiddo.
Employees who accept com time are vulnerable to an employers’ unilateral decision to cash the time out even when the employee may be banking the time for a particular purpose, like maternity leave.
Employees whose employers go out of business risk losing the value of their comp time. Each year, on average, more than 3 million employees lose their jobs when businesses close. Even at the peak of the last business cycle (2006-2007), about 600,000 firms, employing 3.4 million workers, went out of business. [3]
Employers may begin to see come time as an alternative to offering vacation or sick time, shifting the cost of accrued time off from employers to employees.
That’s not flexibility. And that is not what working families need. Preschoolers can call jelly beans vegetables and some politicians can give a bad bill a great name, but parents see through this.

Tell Congress: Vote NO on H.R. 1406 the “comp time” bill and focus on issues that really matter to working families.

http://action.momsrising.org/sign/making_life_worse/?source=taf

*And please be sure to forward this message on to your friends and family so they can take action too. Consider sharing it on your Facebook page!

Together we’re a powerful force for women and families!

-Ruth, Elisa, Anita, Kristin and the whole MomsRising.org team

P.S. Have you ever banked comp time – or any time off - and then weren’t allowed to use it when you needed it? Do you want or need the flexibility to choose overtime pay of accruing comp time? Let us know! Sharing your experiences is a powerful way to make sure legislators know the real consequences of this kind of “comp time” policy. http://www.momsrising.org/member_stories/topic/untitled_844/?source=taf

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[1] Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013 - http://edworkforce.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hr___the_working__families_flexibility_act_of_2013.pdf

[2] HuffPost: Overtime Laws Could Be Loosened Under GOP Comp-Time Proposal -http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/03/overtime-laws-gop-proposal_n_3006658.html

[3] US Census - http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0765.pdf

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