Brothers and Sisters,
If you have been in the Local for a while, you remember when a decision by the Council on Industrial Relations changed the rules governing our over time from “overtime after 8” to “overtime after 40”. Since that day, there has been no end of confusion about how overtime is paid in our Local, especially around holidays.
Section 4.02 of our agreement states: “All work performed outside of regularly scheduled hours will be paid at one and one-half times the regular straight-time rate, provided the employee works all the regular scheduled hours made available. In the event the employee does not work all of the regularly scheduled hours available he will receive no premium rate until after he has worked 40 hours.”
The key to understanding this contract provision is the term “made available”. Let’s say you are working a 5 x 8 schedule. You work 10 hours Monday through Thursday and call in sick on Friday. The correct pay rate for this time would be 40 hours straight time, because you chose not to work the Friday hours made available.
Now let’s say you worked 10 hours Monday though Thursday and got rained out on Friday. The correct rate would be 32 hours straight time and 8 hours overtime, because the Friday hours were not “made available”. Hours you were not able to work do not count against your overtime.
We see the most overtime issues around holidays. Many jobs go to a 4 x 10 schedule on holiday weeks to maintain 40 hours. Per our contract, the correct pay rate for a 4 x 10 schedule during a holiday week is 32 hours straight time and 8 hours overtime. The holiday hours are not “made available”.
If you have issues regarding proper overtime pay, leave a message at the business manager’s extension, or email me.
In Solidarity, Ben Brenneman, Card No. 7698756
