Sponsor Statement for SJR 27

Senate Joint Resolution 27 encourages Congress to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) so workers covered by the overtime provisions of FLSA may choose compensatory time off in lieu of overtime pay. Specifically SJR 27 urges Congress to pass House Resolution 1 (H.R. 1) or its companion bill, Senate bill 4 (S. 4), that would amend FLSA.

SJR 27 endorses H.R. 1 and S. 4 as commonsense legislation which gives working families another option while trying to balance their work and family schedules. These acts allow private sector employers to offer their employees the option of choosing paid compensatory time instead of cash wages when they work overtime hours.

H.R. 1 and S. 4 change overtime rules for private sector employees that were made in 1938. America was very different in 1938. Then, most women worked at home. Now, many women work both in their homes and outside of the home, and struggle to balance time demands of work and family. And now, more men than ever before are balancing parenting with their work schedule. They struggle to be at home when they need to take a sick child to the doctor or to be with an elderly parent. They struggle because they often do not have the ability to get the time off that they need when they need it.

H.R. 1 and S. 4 give employees the freedom to choose for themselves whether more money or time off makes sense. I urge you to support this resolution.