Topics 26-837
Today I addressed the issue.
Dave,
I was referred to you by the national office. Earlier this month, I had taken part in the "observation day," for an organizing campaign with Grassroots in Madison, WI. To my surprise, this required 10-hour day of observation, training, and work, was uncompensated. The local campaign organizer seemed to think that this was legal after I addressed it to her. However, I don't believe it is... at all. According to the Fair Labor Standards Act four criteria must be met for meetings/training sessions to not be considered working time:
1) Attendance is outside of the employee's regular working hours (not met)
2) Attendance is in fact voluntary (work is involuntary if it does not adversely affect the continuance of employment; again this requirement is not met)
3) The training is not directly related to the employee's job (this is also defined in detail in the Chapter 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations pertaining to the Employment Standards Administration, Title 29, Chapter V, Part 785, Subpart C; this requirement is not met)
4) The employee does not perform any productive work during work (not met)
Because you are required to attend this day of work, one should undoubtedly be compensated for its entirety. Making the trainees raise money on their own amounts to nothing more than abuse. Quite possibly one may contend that since no tax forms, contracts, etc. were signed prior to the observation day, that it is legal. However, this is not the case, again, if it is required, and if you are performing tasks for the company/organization.
I write this not because I am concerned with punitive actions against your organization, but because this is exactly the sort of malevolent, unfair practice that goes on daily in the private and even public sectors. I have sincerely supported (and even contributed to) these campaigns, but I now second guess myself. To be a "progressive" organization partaking in battles for the good of all at the price of people's livelihood is nothing more than a poignant hypocrisy. This hypocrisy is not only astounding, but embarrassing. Several of the people I worked with that day were students, and several were middle-aged working people. Not that anyone should encounter these unfair labor practices, but it's likely that some people have taken ten hours out of their lives, away from other obligations, to earn not a penny for their performed work. I have been in a union for four years and have seen these issues dealt with continuously. I have certainly not ruled out attempting to organize the people that work for this organization. This scenario has clearly illustrated the utility of organized labor... sadly. Please contact me at this email address.
Later we will discuss this. Other issues that need clarification and discussion:
1) Chiropractically adjusting dogs: why not?
2) Is giving to charity the same as giving people medicine for cancer?
3) Machines now do a lot more work that humans. For example, it only takes a week or so for about 4 guys to move a bunch of dirt. What does this mean?
4) If the governor cuts jobs to help us save our tax $ (thus providing the state with cheaper contracted jobs), doesn't this just bring less money into the state?
5) I remember when we agreed that Phil Collins and even Genesis were pretty good. Was that true?
6) I bought a couple of Rush albums for a dollar each today. One was Moving Pictures. Was it worth it? I don't really like Tom Sawyer or Limelight
Dave,
I was referred to you by the national office. Earlier this month, I had taken part in the "observation day," for an organizing campaign with Grassroots in Madison, WI. To my surprise, this required 10-hour day of observation, training, and work, was uncompensated. The local campaign organizer seemed to think that this was legal after I addressed it to her. However, I don't believe it is... at all. According to the Fair Labor Standards Act four criteria must be met for meetings/training sessions to not be considered working time:
1) Attendance is outside of the employee's regular working hours (not met)
2) Attendance is in fact voluntary (work is involuntary if it does not adversely affect the continuance of employment; again this requirement is not met)
3) The training is not directly related to the employee's job (this is also defined in detail in the Chapter 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations pertaining to the Employment Standards Administration, Title 29, Chapter V, Part 785, Subpart C; this requirement is not met)
4) The employee does not perform any productive work during work (not met)
Because you are required to attend this day of work, one should undoubtedly be compensated for its entirety. Making the trainees raise money on their own amounts to nothing more than abuse. Quite possibly one may contend that since no tax forms, contracts, etc. were signed prior to the observation day, that it is legal. However, this is not the case, again, if it is required, and if you are performing tasks for the company/organization.
I write this not because I am concerned with punitive actions against your organization, but because this is exactly the sort of malevolent, unfair practice that goes on daily in the private and even public sectors. I have sincerely supported (and even contributed to) these campaigns, but I now second guess myself. To be a "progressive" organization partaking in battles for the good of all at the price of people's livelihood is nothing more than a poignant hypocrisy. This hypocrisy is not only astounding, but embarrassing. Several of the people I worked with that day were students, and several were middle-aged working people. Not that anyone should encounter these unfair labor practices, but it's likely that some people have taken ten hours out of their lives, away from other obligations, to earn not a penny for their performed work. I have been in a union for four years and have seen these issues dealt with continuously. I have certainly not ruled out attempting to organize the people that work for this organization. This scenario has clearly illustrated the utility of organized labor... sadly. Please contact me at this email address.
Later we will discuss this. Other issues that need clarification and discussion:
1) Chiropractically adjusting dogs: why not?
2) Is giving to charity the same as giving people medicine for cancer?
3) Machines now do a lot more work that humans. For example, it only takes a week or so for about 4 guys to move a bunch of dirt. What does this mean?
4) If the governor cuts jobs to help us save our tax $ (thus providing the state with cheaper contracted jobs), doesn't this just bring less money into the state?
5) I remember when we agreed that Phil Collins and even Genesis were pretty good. Was that true?
6) I bought a couple of Rush albums for a dollar each today. One was Moving Pictures. Was it worth it? I don't really like Tom Sawyer or Limelight
posted by fiestawizard at 6:27 PM
12 Comments:
By the way, Dave is the legal advisor for Grassroots Campaigns. They would only give me his email address. I like to comment on my own posts. Writing on this blog is similar to sitting here with my own thoughts, only now I can refer back and say, "oh yeah, that's what I thought/was thinking back then. I guess it's called a web-diary... and self-amusement... and sadistic behavior... and schizophrenia... and that's all.
sweet letter. a lot better than the one i wrote to target, which failed to garner the anticipated outcome (gift cert for free cat litter x1 year). hope yours fares better; your anticipated outcome is...? what? less abuse of dirty hippies by the corporate governing dirty hippy elite? hey man, go all the to the top... write to nader on that one. that filthy bitch.
but... wait... you *weren't* volunteering?! i thought that this whole thing was to help raise money for the senior trip to barcelona! ??? crap.
sorry. just kidding around. i'm tired. 1-2 hrs of sleep last nite, no nap yet.
1. because they are delicate and will bite.
2. only if the charity is one that gives medicine to people with cancer. most charities actually use their money to *cause* other cancers, though, which is way to keep the marketplace competitive for all charities.
3. you could spend time in a country where they still do things by hand, and you'd see what it means. it has to do with the overall pace of life, more than anything. "standard of living" is clearly a relative term defined by people who have an agenda.
4. well, yes. similarly, giving big tax rebates to the "working class" ... those dollars all go towards japanese items and imported glockenshpiels. see: governorship of j. ventura.
5. historians generally agree: genesis was good, but phil collins sucked. good thing he died of ear cancer (see above). that ear cancer explains a lot in terms of his songs in the final days of his life ("do you remember" for example).
6. "living in the limelight, the universal dream... for those who wish to seem." thus, if you are a phony, you want to live in the limelight; so don't be a prick, and "put aside the alienation, get on with the fascination, the real relation, the underlying theme." can wisdom like that have a price? perhaps... but certainly, that price far exceeds USD$1.
Did you read the "future" edition of the onion last week? it was GREAT!
Actually, regarding the letter, the real thing that I was concerned with was not the ill-informed or even the elite hippy college kids, but rather this little black guy named Troy. He tried real hard, and specifically told me he needed some money (he didn't ask for any you racist assholes). He had just moved here from Milwaukee because it was, "getting too rough there." He was like 37 years old and, like I said, it was a waste of his fucking day monetarily.
As for the other things- I really do want some information on why or why not chiropractic care should be applied to animals by human chiropractor without the knowledge of animal anatomy (maybe you can see where I stand here). Yes, generally charities do cause cancer, as many of them are simple paint and solvent charities. You have convinced me that Limelight is good while also showing your ruthless knowledge of Rush lyric. Don't get me wrong, it's been a good song to me, just overplayed a bit. Hey smartass, why don't you tell me what 2112 is about? I'm not testing you, I think you know, but tell me anyway after you sleep some. By the way, please refer to the previous post; the one about Teckenburg. I need the burning of eternal questions to be soothed.
The email, by the way, earned a reply eventually, in which they offered me $60 out of "goodwill." The email was filled with basic bullshit like, "sorry your experience was not good, "we stand by the legality of our practices." They did not, however, explain how they did this. My experience, by the way, was not bad, at least as far as me having trouble with performing the task. There were other shitty things, but that was not one of them. Anyway, fuck.
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