ACLU on Orlando Tragedy

NEW YORK — ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero said the following in response to the Orlando tragedy:

“The Orlando tragedy has shaken us all. At times like this, we must hold close to our core values. Only by doing so can we resist efforts to turn us against one another.

“Our nation’s greatest strength is our diversity — of backgrounds, faiths, and cultures. We believe that LGBT Americans have the right to live and love free of fear and violence. We believe that no one faith group should ever be targeted for pernicious immigration practices or surveillance. We believe discrimination is un-American because it undermines what this nation was created to defend: the right of all people to live, love, and worship as long as they don’t deny others those same rights.

“We must not allow fear and violence to change who we are. Let us show them as one people that they cannot win. America stands for freedom, equality and the inherent dignity of all individuals. We at the ACLU will continue to champion these American values, enshrined in our Constitution and protected by our Bill of Rights.” _____________

How the New Overtime Pay Rule Will Hurt the Middle Class — Employees and businesses alike will feel strain of new regulation: NCPA

Dallas, TX – Businesses will not suffer the Obama Administration’s new overtime rule in silence. Instead, they will likely restructure their employment model and reclassify workers, reduce hours and cut benefits, according to a new report by the National Center for Policy Analysis.

“While Vice President Joe Biden has claimed the new rule is aimed at ‘restoring and expanding access [to overtime pay] to the middle class,’ raising the exemption threshold is liable to have a slew of negative effects,” says Research Associate Danielle Zaychik, who authored the report. Zaychik predicts that businesses and nonprofits will respond to the new overtime rule in three ways: Reclassifying Employees.

Employers may begin paying more employees hourly wages, as opposed to salaries, or decrease their hourly wages to compensate for their overtime pay. Reducing Employees’ Hours. Employers are also likely to cut employees’ hours to less than 40 hours per week, making them ineligible for overtime compensation. They will then replace those hours by hiring additional part-time, entry-level workers.

Cutting Benefits and Workplace Flexibility. Employers are likely to cut employee benefits, such as health insurance, and may add the value of benefits to base pay to push salaries beyond the exemption threshold. If employers are forced to pay more in salaries, they are likely to reduce the plethora of other nonmonetary benefits they provide workers, such as relaxed work demands, workplace ambiance, schedule flexibility, job security, hours of work and fringe benefits.

Mandatory overtime pay was never intended to be a solution for low wages and a shrinking middle class, and the “overtime rule will likely hurt workers even more than their employers by limiting their chances for upward mobility,” warns NCPA Senior Fellow Pam Villarreal. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/how-thenew- overtime-pay-rule-will-hurtthe- middle-class

CATHERINE DANIEL National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum decries Orlando hate crime, cautions against anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim responses

NEW YORK —“Our hearts are broken and we are deeply saddened by the tragedy in Orlando. We stand with the families and communities affected by this senseless act of violence. During the month when LGBTQ people are celebrating who we are, this attack is a sobering reminder of the hatred and discrimination we still face.

“While we mourn the lives lost, we must turn our sorrow into action. Policymakers need to implement stronger, more effective gun control policies immediately. Elected and community leaders must speak out against anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric and legislation being pushed by opportunistic bigots. All of us must honor our fallen sisters and brothers by renewing our commitment to LGBTQ equality and by refusing to be bullied into the shadows. We must live out and proud as we continue our fight for justice.”

MIRIAM YEUNG

Executive Director ###