Rep. Young Introduces SAW Act to Repeal Obamacare Definition of Full-Time Employment

Press Release

Rep. Todd Young (IN-9)--on behalf of himself and Reps. Pete Olson (TX-22), Mike Kelly (PA-3), and Tim Walberg (MI-7)--introduced H.R. 2575, the Save American Workers (SAW) Act on Friday, a bill that would repeal the 30-hour definition of "full-time employment" in the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and restores the traditional 40-hour definition. The bill was introduced with 113 co-sponsors.

"One year ago today, the Supreme Court ruled that the Affordable Care Act would stand," said Young. "But as the administration continues to stumble through implementation of the law, many Americans are still confused with how this sweeping law will work and what its impact will be," said Young. "For hourly workers, though, one thing is already clear: Americans are seeing their hours cut and their paychecks reduced as a result of the employer mandate, a centerpiece of the law. We were promised this bill would create jobs, and evidence that the opposite is happening is apparent every day. Chalk it up as yet another broken promise from those who brought us Obamacare."

Young pointed out that the Affordable Care Act marks the first time that full-time employment has been explicitly defined in federal law, and it was set at a level that is incompatible with existing legal provisions that use the 40-hour standard. For instance, federal law has long dictated that time-and-a-half, or overtime, pay kicks in at 40 hours.

"People in Indiana and all across the country are already feeling the pain of this law because it defines full-time employment as something drastically different than the widely accepted notion of 40 hours per week," said Young. "Repealing this redefinition and restoring it to the historical norm ensures this bill not only protects working poor and middle class employees, it also ensures that laws governing employment are consistent."

Several school corporations, businesses, universities and municipal governments in Indiana and elsewhere have recently announced they would reduce hourly employees to 29 hours or less to comply with the law's requirements and corresponding high costs. As we near January of 2014, when the law is scheduled to go into effect, many more hourly workers are expected to receive similar notice, and to experience a significant loss of personal income.

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