Something to really celebrate

U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Richmond
Published: June 14, 2008

Congress can improve the lot of working moms and dads by passing a new House bill that would help give millions of working parents more flexibility with their schedules.

Most working mothers say they prefer to work fewer hours, even if that means making less money. Moreover, nearly one in three unionized workers — men and women — lists “not enough family and personal time” as the single greatest work-related concern. That’s why there’s so strong a need for the Family-Friendly Workplace Act.

The legislation would update an arcane 1938 law that bars private-sector wage earners from banking overtime hours and using them as paid time off at a later date.

The Family-Friendly Workplace Act gives private sector parents the same flexibility that their counterparts in the public sector have enjoyed for years. Parents who work overtime could choose either overtime pay or compensatory time, both of which compensate workers at the time-and-a-half rate for overtime hours worked.

“Comp time” gives workers one-and-a-half hours of paid time off for each overtime hour worked. If an individual works 48 hours in a given week, accruing eight hours overtime, for example, they could bank 12 hours for the future.

The Family-Friendly Workplace Act was developed with strong safeguards. For example, the comp time option would be voluntary.

The legislation also protects the sanctity of the 40-hour workweek and the way overtime pay is calculated.

By passing this common sense legislation, Congress can lift a huge burden off the shoulders of working families. That would be something to celebrate.

U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Richmond, represents the 7th District, of which Culpeper is a part. Call 825-8960.