Political Psychic

Daily Rants about Politics

Most states by now have “At-Will” employment laws, versus “Right to Work” laws.  “At will” laws prevent you from suing your employer for what might be considered an unlawful termination (discrimination, whistleblower, etc).  In the old days, “Right to Work” laws meant you could not be fired by your employer on a whim.  Proof of incompetence along with documented warnings is usually required to show your termination was justified.   You were usually given a week or two notice (like a pink slip in your paycheck envelope).  But now, most employers (depending on the laws in your state), your boss can get rid of At Will, without any reason or warning.

But under Reagan and both Bushes, because companies were generously rewarded with huge tax breaks if they sent jobs outside the U.S., At Will employment rules became the new tool to help destroy unions and fair labor standards.

One of the things the Obama administration needs to push forward is an agenda that requires or rewards states that recognize “Right to Work” rules or laws.

It basically gives an employer the right to fire anyone he wants for no legal reason, without being liable for any potential lawsuit.  For example, if someone is discovered to be gay or Muslim, or refuses the unwanted advances of a boss who is sexually aggressive, that employee can be fired without any explanation.  An employer is given unlimited rights to fire someone, regardless of the quality of job performance or contractual obligations.   The only thing that employer is liable for is outstanding unpaid wages.  And for some reason, this is still not enough for many employers.

I work as a “temp” – if that’s what you want to call it – since they seem to only call once in a blue moon to give out an assignment. A temp assignment once a year hardly qualifies as a “temp”. More like painfully unemployed.

But I digress…

I went on an assignment last week to plug some program for “No Child Left Behind”. It was for a company called “Project Success” located back east. More about that at some other time. Regardless, my job assignment was for one hour at a school 50++ miles away (102 miles roundtrip). The hourly rate: $10/hour. Seriously. The big thing was supposed to be this: I was going to work 1-hour – but get paid for 4 (-My Employer’s Name Hidden for Protection – ‘ policy – my actual employer – you get paid a minimum of 4-hours even if you only work one hour). Plus, I was going to be reimbursed for gas at the rate of $.50 per mile. Making my gross pay for this assignment $90 ($50 for gas, $40 for work).

Today, I got a direct deposit of exactly: $10.59

It turns out that I was only paid for one hour (if this were true, my pay would’ve been more like $7) — and I need to fill out a special expense report to get reimbursed for the gas.

In the same phone call with my complaint to Kelly Services, I was asked if I wanted an assignment that sounded almost too good to say NO to.

Wanna hear it?

It’s about 40+ miles away from me, starts at 5:00 a.m., lasts for a few months, will require me to work holidays, evenings, weekends, and —- drumroll please…. will pay me a WHOPPING $10 an hour.

The assignment itself ends “when it’s finished”… The work involves data entry.

I remember the days when I used to make $19/hour for doing secretarial work. Real work.

Work that utilized skills.

Data entry is another one of those jobs that requires skills. Fast, accurate typing skills.

The minimum wage rate is somewhere around $8 to $9 an hour — I think it’s $8.90 an hour.

I’m gonna get just a squeek above that rate….

I might as well be shoveling dirt for that money.

And what exactly is that going to pay for??

$10 an hour x 8 hours — $80/day. After taxes, more like $60 or $70. Times that by 4 or 5 days.

That gives me a whopping $300-$400 per week. If I’m lucky.

That’s roughly $1200 to $1600 per month.

How do you live on that?

I guess it’s better than unemployment, which roughs out to about $289/week…

Oy….