July 13, 2015
By LaborPress
President Barack Obama hopes that his proposed Labor Department regulation expanding the number of workers eligible for overtime will help repair his relations with organized labor, which bitterly opposes him on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.
Despite those differences, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said July 1, “when it comes to the value of looking out for middle-class families, the leaders of organized labor and the Obama administration agree just about every time." That may be true, said AFL-CIO legislative director Bill Samuel, but "the trade fight is not over." "We intend to work with the administration until their last day in office," he added. "We have to do more to address wage inequality than just the overtime rule, but it's a key start. The trade agenda pushes us in the other direction." Read more
