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Comment by yariang | Hacker News Reader

I don't understand this. Which part of the linked page outlaws paid over time? As a college student I don't have a lot of experience a) reading legalese and b) with getting paid.

Also, what are the benefits of laws that outlaw overtime? Is it a form of income redistribution? Why computer professionals specifically? Is it because the jobs are not physical and overtime is thus supposedly less taxing?

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The change doesn't outlaw paid overtime. The law, as written, exempts an employer from paying overtime if the employee is an executive, administrative or professional employee.

If an employee cannot be considered exempt (under the law) then it is illegal for an employer to NOT pay overtime.

The change (as proposed in the link) would appear to make it so that an employer could include more of their IT staff in the EXEMPT category.

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 established the over-time compensation requirement and this bill would exempt those professions from that requirement. This would NOT mean that you don't get over-time pay. It would mean that your boss isn't legally obligated to give you over-time pay. Two very different things.

If your boss isn't compensating you properly for your work, give him the finger and find a new job. The government has no business dictating who gets paid what and when. If only they got rid of the entire damn thing.

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