Inappropriate Content

Liar - er, Labor Department

Here's something from www.dol.gov, the Labor Department's front page. As of April 29th, this is the very center of Labors home page, under the headline "Workers Win":

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced the final rules governing overtime eligibility for "white-collar" workers under the Fair Labor Standards Act on April 20. The regulations had not been substantially updated for over 50 years, creating confusion for workers and employers, generating wasteful class action litigation, and failing to effectively protect workers' pay rights.
"Today, workers win. The department's new rules guarantee and strengthen overtime rights for more American workers than ever before," said Secretary Chao.

Wow! That sounds great! I'm sure our American journalists will have told us all about these great new rules! Let's check it out:

The New York Times:"Karen D. Smith, a former Labor Department wage and hour investigator, said the new rule ``artfully weakens the current regulation in very subtle but significant ways that will surprise employers and employees.'' She said nurses, nursery school teachers, cooks, computer and financial industry workers and others making between $23,660 and $100,000 would be adversely affected. ... At the same time, the [AFL-CIO] made clear its continuing opposition, issuing a statement by its president, John Sweeney, that said Chao ``continued to tell half-truths about whether workers are at risk of losing overtime pay.''
The Nation:"Nurses, tech workers, military reservists, cooks, fire fighters and dental hygienists are among millions of people who -- if the White House has its way -- could find themselves working overtime hours minus the overtime pay, as early as this September."
The Economic Policy Institute:"On March 31, 2003, the Department of Labor (DOL) proposed regulatory changes, which if adopted, could make more than eight million white-collar employees ineligible for overtime pay. ... The DOL proposes a new exemption that will deny overtime pay to white-collar employees who earn $65,000 or more a year, even if they do not meet the definition of executive, administrative, or professional employees. This proposal will exempt an estimated 1.3 million employees who currently are entitled to overtime pay."

Not that I'm saying it would be inappropriate for the Bushies to use the official Labor Department home page for political propaganda. I just think they could be a bit more subtle about it.