Because the intent of the overtime law (1938) was to discourage business owners from working their employees to death.?ÿ Rather than working 1 guy 80 hours (40 regular, 40 OT) it would be cheaper to hire 2 guys to work 40 hours each.?ÿ Now-a-days the cost of hiring a second employee is so high that it's cheaper to pay the overtime.
Overtime is supposed to be a penalty for the employer, but it's obviously scaled poorly over time.?ÿ OT today should be double or triple time so that it's cheaper to hire additional employees.
Anyway, that's how it's a half-price employee.
@bstrand?ÿ
For a short term seasonal increase OT makes sense.?ÿ For a sustained demand or an expanding business it doesn't.?ÿ
There is a point were productivity decreases in relationship to number of hours worked.?ÿ
Some people actually have a life after 40 hrs.
All true statements. I think that what @bstrand is pointing out is that most firms use OT in a manner inconsistent with its purpose. It really does depend on where you work, but I would say that at least half the firms I worked for used OT far too liberally.
By liberally, I mean putting additional employees on seriously mismanaged projects long after the original project team has screwed the pooch, as in months after the red flag should have been thrown.
The result was effectively required OT for weeks at a time, done by a select few employees (like myself) who were essentially the "cleanup" team who got handed a mess and a ton of stress like clockwork every month or two, with the expectation that we would "fix it" in record time.
In those cases, OT doesn't really compensate for that lost personal time, especially when work is all stress, all the time, and you know it's just going to keep happening. It's one of the reasons I have hopped around so much.
It's a catch-22 in my case, since I need the bigger-firm benefits due to family medical issues, but am exasperated by corporate surveying.
?ÿ
(I will note that I was just fine working OT in AK, where you hit 1.5 pay as soon as you go over eight hours in a day. And for remote work in the summertime, it's not like I had much going on after work anyways...but if I was back in ANC and I had 50+ hours by Wednesday or Thursday afternoon, I was heading for the backcountry that night, I didn't care how much work we had.)
If suffering a penalty makes sense then it seems clear to me that the penalty is too weak.
Speaking from my own experience I think just about every job I've had has told me I can work as much overtime as I want.?ÿ This didn't become a red flag to me until I got older, but in hindsight I realize there are a couple explanations for it-- 1.) I did such a poor job of negotiating my pay that even with the overtime penalty I'm still only making what my peers are making (or less) during regular time, 2.) my employer is bad at managing their money.
I think #1 is the most likely explanation.
Have you ever had an employer try to spin overtime pay as a bonus??ÿ I have... multiple times.?ÿ It's insulting now that I know the history of the law and the employer's most likely motivation.
As someone here recently quipped: "It isn't much use being the richest person in the graveyard".
In those cases, OT doesn't really compensate for that lost personal time...
I have tried to explain this to my baby-boomer dad and some of my coworkers from that generation and it's funny how they get a blank face and it just does not compute with them.
I say "Look, if I made $30 an hour then I get $15 OT.?ÿ I value my free time at $20 an hour.?ÿ FREE TIME IS WORTH SOMETHING.?ÿ So, when I work OT I am actually losing money."?ÿ They shake their head and go "No, you work!?ÿ And you keep working until you're crippled by arthritis!?ÿ And then you die!?ÿ And your family inherits whatever is left!".?ÿ Well, maybe they don't say it so bluntly but that's the typical vibe I get from this crowd.?ÿ ???
Anyway, it continues to stun me how older folks seem to place little to no value on their free time.?ÿ It's like the only free time that's worth anything to them is whatever time they have in retirement.?ÿ But hell... by then you might be dead.?ÿ It's a strange logic to follow, imo.
@bstrand?ÿ
I accidentally worked 30 minutes overtime any you'd have thought I killed the Easter bunny with Santa's belt.?ÿ?ÿ
Its not a bonus, it's as you're describing, required by law for non-exempt employees, and a demonstration of project creep in it's most basic simple form.
?ÿ
?ÿ
My $0.02
The employer doesn't have to pay any?ÿ additional for vacation, health insurance, etc., so aren't out the whole extra 50%. It may be cheaper to pay the crews overtime rather than another employee.
But the facts argue against your points 1) and 2) above.?ÿ The employer isn't paying a real penalty, isn't necessarily paying you less than others, or mismanaging his money.
killed the Easter bunny with Santa's belt.?ÿ?ÿ
Woodland Creatures got his back:
@pls well that's your problem: stop doing construction staking! That business is a joke, I absolutely HATE IT as well ?????ÿ
And you're right, the days of the $850 surveys are gone. Most anything I do starts at $3500 assuming I have to set anything that needs to be recorded.
stop doing construction staking! That business is a joke
lmao...... ?????ÿ
I retired about 16 months ago. ?ÿIt??s not what I expected, it??s better. ?ÿI thought I would want to work a few days a week, I really don??t but will if they call and I don??t have travel plans. ?ÿI have worked maybe 80 hours since I retired and half of that was a free job for a friend. ?ÿ
To the OP, what are your plans for retirement? ?ÿSounds like it??s time to think about it.
?ÿ
That's from WKRP in Cincinnati and their spoofing of the famed Turkey Drop that used to be held annually in Yelliville, Arkansas, the hometown of my daughter's freshman year roommate at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
It appears Mr. Carlson (Gordon Jump) failed to take any classes from the Poultry Science Department during his time at Kansas State University.
@flga-2-2?ÿ
Different strokes for different folks.
If I wanted to have someone else telling me 24/7 where I will be and how I will be doing what it is in need of being done and reminded at least 12 times per hour that I'm either doing it wrong or too slowly or both............I would be a bigamist.?ÿ A spouse must sleep sometime.?ÿ But, two or more could take turns.
I've had much different experiences than you.?ÿ Probably why I see it as easy and profitable work.
Over the years I came to realize that taking a bigger bite than I could chew made me a liar.?ÿ It's not all that difficult to meet a contractor's schedule if you have good communications. I might even give them a call if I know they're about ready for something when planning my schedule.?ÿ That often prevents conflicts.
As far as multiple calls telling me I don't know what the hell I'm doing or am to slow I am blessed to have never received one.
?ÿ
I??m not even sure if my SWMBO stops talking in her sleep. (separate bedrooms: reason, I fart and she snores) ?????ÿ
@david-livingstone Folk don't voice this experience nearly as often as they should. My Dad has been retired for 14 years and it has never once occurred to him to go back to work. Then again, his job never defined him as a person, even though he did the same type of work for 40+ years. He loves his life in retirement, and he certainly isn't bored. His work is (and always has been) to the Lord and not anyone going by "boss" or "client".?ÿ
I try to keep this mindset front and center, although I have done a poor job of it over the last decade. Since becoming licensed I am relieved to find myself coming back to center, or taking a good backsight if you will so I can keep moving forward.