Posted on 01/15/2009 3:34:39 AM PST by governsleastgovernsbest
The news that the Gannett Company--the nation’s largest newspaper publisher, flagship USA Today--is forcing thousands of its employees to take unpaid leave is the latest, shocking, evidence of the ill health of the old media.
But for present purposes, let's focus on this odd nugget: Gannett has informed its employees that pursuant to federal and state law, they [emphasis added]:
must not work while on an unpaid leave. That includes reading or responding to e-mails, calling or responding to calls from colleagues and being on site at your location at any time during your furlough days.
Can't you just imagine the scenario? A conscientious furloughed Gannett employee is at home trying to stay current by reading some emails, when suddenly comes a battering at the door: "FBI! Put down the mouse and step slowly away from your computer!"
(Excerpt) Read more at newsbusters.org ...
Do these laws apply to management/supervisory employees? Those would be the ones most likely to ‘work’ through a furlough.
I can’t imagine a manager not responding to an email until 9:01am on the day his/her furlough is over. Would Gannett otherwise have to close down their company email accounts during that period?
Does the NEA enforce these laws for teachers who bring work home? I can hardly think of a teacher who doesn’t bring work home, but never heard of putting in for payment for that time.
Makes me happy I am self-employed!
They apply across the board, but those of us in management positions are less likely to put in work, then complain about it. We, by law, are automatically eligible for comp time vs. pay for overtime - to get pay takes a special request that needs to be approved from higher ups. The non-supervisory positions are still allowed to be in the unions and they automatically get pay for overtime, unless they specifically request comp time. The union-eligible folks are still supposed to be notified that they are being tasked for overtime, and there are procedures to approve the overtime so the budget doesn't get busted.
There have been cases of employees hanging around before and after work, without permission, and keeping log books of their "overtime", then surprising management with demands for overtime pay. One such case got a lot of pay, then tried to do it all over again and his boss had to have him escorted from the work area by law enforcement on the base. Due to the federal rules, the guy couldn't be formally disciplined or terminated because it's management's job to ensure they only "work" when they are supposed to. The bureaucracy makes it a bit tough on management at times.
Sounds dreadful!
The nice thing, they say, about self-employment is that you can ‘make your own hours,’ to which I respond, “yeah, you can work any 24 hours in a day you want!” And I have put in PLENTY of 24 hour days. Still, I’d prefer that to being told when I can and cannot work, or being told I can’t work when a job needs to be done.
But with people willing to loiter around the office so they can later file for OT, I guess it all has to be very closely monitored. It’s a shame we’ve gotten to the point where people can’t assume an honest day’s work for an honest wage and let it go at that.
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