Re: Microsoft trickery (fwd)

[Martin Watts <ecmjw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Sid Shniad wrote:

> > Subject:   Microsoft trickery
> >
> > Computer underground Digest    Sun  Dec 21, 1997   Volume 9 : Issue
> 92
> >                            ISSN  1004-042X
> > [...]
> >        Cu Digest Homepage: http://www.soci.niu.edu/~cudigest
> > [...]
> >
> > Date: Fri, 19 Dec 1997 21:05:37 -0800 (PST)
> > From: "T.L. Kelly" <room101@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> > Subject: File 2--Urgent Action: WA state HOUSE BILL 2209
> >
> > The WSDMA, a "labor" organization, has quietly asked the Washington
> > Dept. of Labor and Industry to strip computer professionals making
> > over $27.63 an hour of their overtime.
> >
> > Furthermore, the proposed law is written in such a way as to exempt
> > "Any employee who is a computer system analyst, computer programmer,
>
> > software engineer, software developer, or other similarly skilled
> > worker" even from the minimum wage provisions of Washington state
> law.
> >
> > If approved, the law will be adopted Dec. 31, 1997, and become
> > effective Feb. 1, 1998.
> >
> > The WSDMA's largest member is Microsoft, the largest employer of
> > computer contractors in the region with an estimated 3-5,000 such
> > employees. The company recently lost a labor case brought by a group
>
> > of contract workers. It is the company's acknowledged policy to
> employ
> > contract workers to avoid the cost of benefits, vacation, etc.
> >
> > Recent applicants have confirmed to me that Microsoft explicitly
> > *requires* all contract workers to work "a minimum of 50-55 hours a
> > week".
> >
> > The Boeing Company is also a member of the WSDMA.
> >
> > The WSDMA's legal move was kept secret. The "request" was not
> reported
> > in the local press until the day AFTER the public comment period had
>
> > ended. The author of that story has acknowledged he learned of the
> > proposal in October, but did not cover it because he "didn't
> > appreciate the significance." One wonders how he manages to cross
> the
> > street successfully.
> >
> > The "public" hearing was scheduled for the Tuesday before
> Thanksgiving
> > from 10 am to noon--in Tumwater, WA, several miles south of Olympia.
>
> > The vast majority of the state's contract workers live in Seattle
> and
> > neighboring communities far to the north.
> >
> > The WSDMA's own street-level membership was not informed of the
> move,
> > let alone invited to comment.
> >
> > It should be noted that computer professionals are already barred
> from
> > labor organizing by a Cold War-era federal law. It seems the time
> has
> > come to work to get that law overturned on Constitutional grounds.
> But
> > first...
> >
> > THE PERIOD FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE OVERTIME LAW HAS BEEN EXTENDED
> > UNTIL DEC. 19--NEXT FRIDAY.
> >
> > Management and owners have had nearly two months to comment, we have
>
> > less than a week. Please make it count.
> >
> > Comments can be sent to Linda Merz of the Washington State Dept. of
> > Labor and Industry at (360) 902-5403 or merl235@xxxxxxxxxx
> >
> > Please be clear, relatively brief, and most importantly courteous
> > (even if firm).
> >
> > Comments of up to 10 pages may be faxed to (360) 902-5300 or snail
> > mailed to:
> >
> > Greg Mowat, Program Manager
> > Employment Standards
> > Department of Labor and Industries
> > P.O. Box 4-4510
> > Olympia, WA 98504-4510
> >
> > Below is an excerpt from the proposed law, HOUSE BILL 2209.  As you
> > can see, it applies to just about anyone working in the computer and
>
> > web industries.
> >
> > (source: http://www.wa.gov/lni/pa/w128-535.htm )
> >
> > (1) Any employee who is a computer system analyst, computer
> > programmer, software engineer, software developer, or other
> similarly
> > skilled worker will be considered a "professional employee" and will
>
> > be exempt from the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the
> > Washington Minimum Wage Act if:
> >
> > (i) Applying systems analysis techniques and procedures to determine
>
> > hardware, software, or system functional specifications for any user
>
> > of such services; or
> >
> > (ii) Following user or system design specifications to design,
> > develop, document, analyze, create, test, or modify any computer
> > system, application, or program, including prototypes; or
> >
> > (iii) Designing, documenting, testing, creating, or modifying
> computer
> > systems, applications, or programs for machine operation systems; or
>
> >
> > (iv) Any combination of the above primary duties whose performance
> > requires the same skill level [...]
> >
> > RESOURCES ONLINE
> >
> > News Stories (both of 'em -- literally)
> >
> >    Temporary software workers to lose OT
> >    http://www.seattletimes.com/extra/browse/html97/temp_120597.html
> >
> >    Software temps gain time to fight OT changes
> >    http://www.seattletimes.com/extra/browse/html97/temp_121097.html
> >
> > Info from WA State Dept of L&I
> > http://www.wa.gov/lni/pa/over.htm
> > http://www.wa.gov/lni/pa/w128-535.htm
> >
> > HOUSE BILL 2209 as posted on the WA Legislature Site
> > http://leginfo.leg.wa.gov/pub/billinfo/house/2200-2224/2209_022697
> >
> > WA Legislature Site
> > http://leginfo.leg.wa.gov/
> >
> > WSDMA
> > http://www.wsdma.org
> >
> > [...]
> >



--
Martin Watts
Department of Economics
University of Newcastle
New South Wales 2318
Australia
Email: ecmjw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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