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_£*!* JJortlattò (©bseruer_____________________ August 2s, 2004
Federal Overtime Rules Now in Place
Oregon labor
commissioner vows
to protect workers
O regon Labor C om m issioner Dan
G ardner believes O re g o n ’s superior
w orker protections will shield O regon
w orkers from many o f the adverse im ­
pacts from new federal overtim e rules.
“ Luckily, here in O regon we already
have superior legal protections in place
in many cases regarding w orkers and
overtim e rules,” Gardner said. "The good
new s is that in those cases O regon’s
rules are still the law."
In addition to the cases w here ex ist­
ing O regon laws already favor w orkers,
som e o f the new rules will benefit O r­
egon workers.
G ardner estim ated that as many as
75,000 O regonians m ight now qualify
for overtim e pay under the new federal
salary standard that says a w orker m ust
earn $455 a week or m ore to be co n sid ­
ered exem pt from overtim e.
The exem ptions from overtim e, com ­
monly referred to as the “w hite co llar”
exem ptions, are for individuals “en ­
gaged in adm inistrative, executive or
professional w ork.” U nder law, em ploy­
ers who are subject to both state and
federal law m ust apply the standard
most beneficial to the em ployee.
G ardner called the federal effort an ­
other case o f “ sm oke and m irrors” and
said the resulting confusion over the
new rules may hide negative effects
upon both em ployers and workers.
“ It is clear the federal governm ent
has failed to do what it set out do and
Sandy Williams, a member of the American Federation o f Government Employ­
ees, marches during a protest over new overtime regulations outside Labor
Department headquarters in Washington, D.C. Monday. (AP photo)
sim plify, clarify and b etter organize the
regulations," G ardner said. “ Instead,
w hat we now have is com plicated and
confusing and potentially ch ao tic.”
The confusion m ight result in years
o f costly litigation for em ployers and
also m eans that the state m ust decide
w hether to change its laws to reflect the
new rules.
G ardner said that despite the expected
confusion, he intends to take a clear
stance on b eh alf o f O regon w orkers.
“ I d o not in ten d to allow th is c o n ­
fu sio n to clo u d my p o sitio n reg ard in g
p r o te c tio n o f O re g o n ’s w o rk e rs ,”
G a rd n e r said . “ In ca se s w here it is
u n c le a r w hich set o f ru les b e tte r p ro ­
te c ts w o rk e rs, I in te n d to ex e rc ise my
a u th o rity as L ab o r C o m m issio n e r to
look o u t fo r the in te re sts o f O regon
w o rk e rs.”
Bush Campaign Sued for Discrimination Voting Intimidation Probe Wanted
(AP) - An African Ameri- Cheney ’04 of racial discrimi- paign field director, says she
can is accusing the Florida nation in a federal lawsuit. was fired from her job, which
Republican Party and Bush-
Nadia Naffe, a former cam- she held from August 2003 to
April of this year, after she
complained about being as­
signed to work with black
organizations, events and is­
sues. Naffe, 25, of Tampa,
was the only black field di­
The
way
rector at the time. She said
on your
she was told, “You under­
to predict your / ' b . a c S h ta e rt lo r’s
degrc
stand
your people.”
with university trapse C0Uf,
After
refusing the assign­
L au n c h a c a re e r
is to
ments,
Naffe
said she was
one- and two-year cwMicai
k
called insubordinate and “not
it! ,
a team player.” The lawsuit
says she contacted the U.S.
Equal Employment Opportu­
U p g ra d e yo u r
jo b s k ills with
nity Commission, and was
continuing education.
soon after fired.
D e v e lo p yo u r
“Instead of true conserva­
e m p lo y e e s wit»-- on ■■
tism,
she found herself faced
workforce framing
with discrimination and intol­
Enjoy N o n C re d it
erance. And instead of com­
C la s s e s ‘or W^long learning
personal deve'opm on’
passion, she found retalia­
P ortland a
tion,” said one of N affe’s
C om m unity www.pcc.edu
law yers, C yrus M ehri of
C o llege
503-977-4519
Washington.
best
future
create
Lawmakers say minority community targeted
Florida’s three black repre­
sentatives in Congress, called
on U.S. Attorney General John
Ashcroft to conduct an immedi­
ate investigation into reports of
voter intimidation in Orlando’s
minority community.
Rep. Alcee Hastings and
others cited recent reports of
Florida Department of Law
Enforcement officers “visit­
ing” voters, the majority of
whom were black and elderly,
to investigate voter fraud alle­
gations that arose during the
Orlando mayoral election this
past March.
“Injustice and voter intimi­
dation are again showing their
ugly faces in Florida,” writes
R ep resen tativ es H astings,
C orrine Brow n, K endrick
Meek and others.
The recent reports of voter
intimidation come in the wake
of Florida Secretary of State
u s b a n k .c o m
4 < \o,oo°po
i i S - ^ P
Ö C
r
\n mirice column Linnen fin­
ii'. fenile'.', ap/nmieli In reality
based '.ubject'.!
Dear Deanna!
APP'
o bi
nificantly flawed.
“Property ownership, lit­
eracy tests, poll taxes, road
blocks, felon purges, and now
in tim id a tio n
of
the
elderly. When does it end? We
had hoped that our children
Dear Deanna!
Real People. Real Advice
I have a live in boyfriend that
doesn’t work. He told me he wants
to be a bachelor and move back
home with his mom and other things
I d id n 't want to hear because I love
him. I try to let him know I’m there
for him and other good stuff, but
nothing works. He says he’s not
ready for a serious relationship at
age 21. Should I keep trying or just
let him leave? -A nonym ous; On
Line Reader
from voting. They can’t stop
us, so now they’re trying to
scare us. Well, it’s not going
to work. It’s going to take the
National Guard to stop us from
voting this November, and you
can quote me on that.”
Dear Deanna!
M y b o y f r ie n d ’s c o n t r o l lin g
m other has a problem with our
relationship because I’m 50 and
h e’s 36. He lives at hom e but
plans to m ove in w ith me and
w e’ll m arry later. She has made
things seem negative to the fam ­
ily and is now trying to push him
to get a place and marry me now.
T his is not our plan but I know he
abides by her rules. —U nknow n;
Tam pa, Fla.
Dear Unknown:
Your future m other-in-law thinks
y o u ’re too close to her age to be
dating her son. The thought o f
her baby fornicating and shack­
ing with an older w om an is also a
slap in her face. Y ou’reoldenough
to know that a m other on a m is­
sion c a n ’t be defeated. Talk with
her on a personal level to help her
adjust to the age difference. You
need to do the right thing co n ­
cerning your “ m o m m a’s boy"
before this destroys the fam ily
and your relationship.
I’m not sure how to let my boy­
friend in prison know that I’m leav­
Dear Anonymous:
ing for college. I really care about
Your young boyfriend w ants to
him, but I want to enjoy fun times of
sow his wild oats. Y ou’ll make the
my life as I complete my education
situ a tio n w o rse by try in g to
and ju st be young and single. I’ve
change his mind and force him to
always wanted to be a news anchor
and I honestly don’t see how he fits stay in the relationship. At his
age, he should be finishing co l­
into the picture. -G ro w n Teen­
lege or w orking instead o f play ­ A sk D eanna is w ritten by D eanna
ager; Toledo, Ohio
ing mind gam es and running home M. W rite A sk D eanna! Em ail:
Dear Grown:
to m om m a. Respect his honesty a skd ea n n a l @yahoo.com o r 264
If you have the opportunity to get and send him on his merry way S. L aC ienega Blvd. Suite 1283
an education, meet people and pur­ because y o u ’re ju st as young and Beverly Hills, CA 90211. Website:
sue your dreams, then go for it. still have room to sam ple life and w w w .askdeanna.com
O bviously he d id n 't care much its m any offerings.
’c ^ o rtla n h (©bscruer
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Any way you add it,
this is one great deal!
would grow up in a time when
their right to vote would never
be at risk. Apparently, that
day has not yet come,” said
Rep. Hastings. “This is just
another example in the long
list of efforts to stop black folk
The recent reports o f voter intimidation
come in the wake o f Florida Secretary of
State Glenda Hood's announcement to
scrap the state's plan to remove more than
48,000 suspected felons from Florida’s
voting rolls.
about the relationship if he com mit­
ted a crime that removed him from
society. Be honest with your jailed
boyfriend and let him know your
goalsdon’tincludehim. lfhe doesn’t
understand, then too bad because
he made his life choices and you
have to make yours.
You do the math.
4.90X 1
This rate is only good for a
limited time! D on’t miss this
w indow o f opportunity!
Glenda Hood’s announcement
to scrap the state’s plan to
remove more than 48,000 sus­
pected felons from Florida’s
voting rolls. That action was
taken after press reports un­
covered that the list was sig­
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