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I call BS
This basically means this employee was working 18 hour days for 1 year.
2080 = 8 hrs a day X 5 days a week X 52 weeks a year - Normal shift
2600 = 10 Hrs a day X 5 days a week X 52 weeks a year - OT shift
I call BS on this. The state needs to claw this money back.
whats BS is your understanding of overtime pay
Lets say you work a 10 hour shift in, idk, Target, on sunday. You're getting 5 hours of overtime pay for that 10 hour shift. You didn't work 15 hours. You got time and a half.
If your contract/employment agreement stipulates double time (probably not at target) well, guess what, that 10 hour shift got turned into 20 hours of pay.
Overtime hours paid does not remotely have to come close to overtime hours worked.
In fact, it generally never will.
Better reporting needed
I've clock-punched for companies using wage reporting systems that have used the basic calculations where my OT hourly total was exactly that: the number of hours I was paid at time-and-a-half.
The problem here is poor reporting. Simply saying "2,600 overtime hours" doesn't tell anyone if that is the hourly equivalent of the standard pay rate or if that is the hourly total of OT pay. I'd wager the reporter didn't work out those calculations because 2,600 was the most shocking way he could spin it.
Guaranteed weeks of paid vacation, low weekly hourly overtime thresholds, daily thresholds, Sundays/holidays, time-and-half/double-time/bonus, and more dramatically impact how easy it is to get into the OT zone and its varying rates. This reporter didn't even need to get into all of that, but a simple "according to records, he worked X many hours last year," would've been basic information to report, but through laziness or purposeful omission the "2,600 hours" being reported will understandably get the reaction of the OP who is calling BS.
thats all well and good
but calling BS and demanding the state "claw back" its wages (lol, seriously?) deserved my reply
Systems vary
Overtime on a time sheet may not indicate number of hours worked overtime but regular hour equivalents. Much depends on how the system is set up and has to be reported.
Example: A person works 4 hours overtime in a given week. That person is entitled to 1.5-times their standard hourly rate. 4 X 1.5 = 6 hrs. As such they may report 6 overtime hours payable at their standard rate.
This allows the person or system handling payroll to easily add up hours, pay rate, and extend the totals out. Under this system the calculation is done on the time sheet up front, rather than being calculated at the payroll desk otherwise.
If there was no one above that person signing off, then the system was flawed. However, if the system is broken you may not be able to blame the person in question.
also worth noting
is that while generally OT is time and a half, theres plenty of jobs where its been negotiated at a higher rate depending on the situation. i've gone on about this before, and without knowing the particulars of their contract i have no way of knowing how they get paid out. but its entirely possible for some people to get paid doubles or time and a half for anything over 8 hours a day, anything after or before a certain time, or between two times, et cetera.
theres a considerable amount of factors that go into how pay is calculated, sometimes its very complex. hey, sometimes its also pretty simple. what would have been nice is (as has been mentioned already) if the reporter had, i dont know, done some reporting.
Very true...
I used to work in a healthcare-related field. In many of the places I worked, overtime was calculated differently for different types of hourly workers Some workers (often nurses and other direct care staff) were paid overtime once they worked over 8 hours in a given day, plus any hours total over 40 a week. Other employees (often ancillary personnel) were paid overtime only when they reached those 40 hours a week. And this was just once company.
My boyfriend is an hourly worker who has his overtime calculated differently depending on the situation. Hours over 8 in a given day are paid one rate (1.5x hourly pay), and holiday/weekend hours are paid another rate (2x hourly pay). And he's paid a third rate when he works while on call, and also receives a minimum amount of hours for that even if he works less (3x hourly, with at least 3 hours of pay).
Scum, since clearly you feel this is on the up and up
do you know where I can apply?
clearly?
No, I'm just not ignorant enough to jump to conclusions.
This guy may have been working entirely within the system. If that system itself is broken to some degree, take issue with that, not the guy working it.
Also, that you have to ask where to apply means you would never, ever make it to a position like his. Sorry.
E: You'll find I don't even tend to land on the side of pro labor very often. But if you have gaping loopholes and make it easy enough for somebody that knows your system to game it, I also feel like you have it coming. Management and those that sign the contracts need to be held accountable for setting up an environment where something like this is possible, not the guy who would be leaving thousands of dollars on the table. Assuming the OT was actually authorized and the work was actually done, of course.
Well, allowing employees to
Well, allowing employees to sign off on their own overtime is a red flag.
How was that ever a good idea?
And I'll wager this guy was gaming the system. You can do the math, think of scenarios how this happened above board, etc. But I doubt it. Wheneve we hear of these stories, I've never heard an explanation of how this is legitimate.
I'll still say I bet the guy gamed the system
dont lose sight
of the comment i was actually replying to. which displayed a lack of awareness of how OT is commonly calculated, as well as a cry for getting the wages back.
working a system and breaking rules within a system to obtain your goals are two entirely different things. when you have a system where OT approvals are pre-stamped by a supervisor, its entirely possible you can do no wrong and still make out like a 'bandit'
I agree and that is why I
I agree and that is why I feel all management/ supervisors should reapply for their positions.
Management is obviously not up to the job.
If you can okay overtime pay yourself
then hire yourself. Brilliant!
Question
And I'm sure there's an answer for this but why can't there be a class action lawsuit against the T? Surely people have been late to work, missed interviews, etc. I write this as we crawl through Charkes station on the red line now.
Sure, But...
Good luck getting any settlement money from an underfunded, bankrupt entity.
I see no problem here
The ability to approve your own overtime cuts headcount. And now this efficient, self-driven, hard-worker is retiring? If only we had more snow, I bet he could've enticed himself to stay. Damn you, global warming!
And people...
...wonder why the MBTA is in such financial trouble. Only would a union/public sector employee be able to approve their own OT/Extra pay. Private sector you'd be fired before you could fill out your time card.
Here's SwirlyGrrl...
@Adam: OT... Isn't it appropriate to credit Andy Metzger at State House News Service as well as WBUR? Jess wundrin'...
You're right
I missed the byline. Post corrected.
Gold Watch
This employee, whether real or fraudulently gave himself a nice goodbye gift. He took all the overtime he could before he retired. His own person gold watch or golden parachute. The T oversight on overtime has always been lax and stuff like this is common practice. Usually not to this degree.
Ummm…”not to this degree”? Isn’t that a tell already?
If he then went on to retire, most municipal/union employees also have it so that their still-lavish pensions (something those paying for everything no longer have) are calcualted relative to the income they made in their final years, which means he likely was following standard practice of gaming the final years income to jack up his pension.
This happens ALL THE TIME. Perhaps not often where the employee is their own oversight, but it is why California’s budget is so entirely broken right now. If the left doesn't wake up to pension reform (which are repeatedly untouchable because unions), these systems will just be left further in the hole and their unfunded liabilities crowding out other essential spending as other systems go to rot.
ahh yes, the left, the right
we're definitely going to solve a lot of problems by splitting an issue down the middle and erecting a gigantic fence. lets blame an entire political spectrum for this, that won't alienate anybody and is definitely conducive to finding an arrangement that will benefit the most people
- sincerely, well, shit, if im not the left, or the right, maybe im just the rear end
overtime
it is common practice to overtime hours preference to someone who is in need or is short time. This seems like it was a bit extreme.
almost without a doubt
seniority would be the biggest factor
If I'm not mistaken, MBTA and
If I'm not mistaken, MBTA and other Massachusetts state pensions are calculated as a percentage of the three highest years of base pay. OT is not factored into it.
That's it, we really need to
That's it, we really need to punish T riders for this. How about Baker cancels all service after 8pm and changes the D line to buses. That'll show riders.
Not Reformy Enough
T will now only run between 8am-9:45am and 4:45-6pm. All aboveground rail lines will be bustituted, all key routes dropped to standard headways. Monthly linkpasses will now cost $360 for parity with Zone 10 passes. What's the problem? Riders need to start paying their fair share, service needs to be reduced to reasonable levels.
Whoops, my ride's here, if he was even one second late I would have strangled him!
We're Being Snookered - But Not by MBTA Workers
I'm really getting tired of this context-free, class warfare employee shaming. $315,000 is 0.02% of the MBTA's budget. That's two hundredths of one percent.
Would it cost the T more of less to hire two people to do the same amount of work? And if it's more, then what the fuck is the problem? Good for that guy.
I couldn't disagree more with
I couldn't disagree more with this statement and I think many taxpayers would also.
Good for that guy? Are two employees needed? Haven't you heard how employees game the OT?
It amazes me that people cling to excuses even today. If management allowed this - they need to be replaced, like yesterday.
It's not class warfare, it's common sense.
you disagree with
"Would it cost the T more of less to hire two people to do the same amount of work? And if it's more, then what the fuck is the problem? Good for that guy."
So if it saves the T money, you disagree with it? You're disagreeing with what you assume is going on, not with the situation that guy provided for you. You did something similar to my post.
working twice hours <> two employees
Note that studies have shown a decline in productivity with longer hours. So a person working an 80 hour week does not do the same quantity/quality of two people working 40 hours. I'd rather have two people with their wits about them than one person who isn't home long enough to sleep properly.
The point is - were those 80
The point is - were those 80 hours ever really needed? You automatically assume it is, I would assume nothing with the T.
Re classify, identify and review each and every job classification. You may find you can trim the fat on one end and find you need more fte's on the other. Right now it seems no one knows.
double standard with public transit funding vs other government
But these are problems statewide, with police, firefighters, highway, convention center. But in the case of the T, its always punish the riders by reducing service and complaining about every bad employee, but with police, firefighters, out of control highway costs, convention center payroll, its all "well, a few bad apples", we didnt cancel the Big Dig or 128 expansion because of employee pay abuse/overspending on highway projects, or cut back police and fire payrolls, in Boston they just got a 20% raise! Why is it with public transit conservatives always rush to scream that we need to cancel or trim service or projects, and they scream about the terrors of socialist public transit, but when school funding or police/fire keeps skyrocketing, no one is calling to cut their budgets or only have 1/2 school days or no convention center authority? Why the double standard?
because public transit
helps minorities and poors
No, because the T is in that
No, because the T is in that bad of shape.
Minorities and poor? What about the workers coming in from suburbia? They don't count?
People not being able to get to work and appointments is a huge FAILURE.
I read about it every day on UHub how the public transportation in Boston is unacceptable.
I'll criticize the bloated OT on cops and fire and T workers alike! I play no favorites. None of it is acceptable. You want to turn a blind eye to the t employees - go for it, don't expect others to.
ok
"Nationally, public transportation users are disproportionately minorities with low to moderate incomes. Overall, public transit users are 45 percent white, 31 percent African American, and 18 percent Latino/Hispanic. In urban areas, African Americans and Latinos together comprise 54 percent of public transportation users (62% of bus riders, 35% of subway riders, and 29% of commuter rail riders.) Twenty-eight percent of public transportation users have incomes of $15,000 or less, and 55 percent have incomes between $15,000 and $50,000. Only 17 percent have incomes above $50,000. Just 7 percent of white households do not own a car, compared with 24 percent of African-American households, 17 percent of Latino households, and 13 percent of Asian-American households."
Don't take my word for it, take UCLA's. Also even if that wasn't the case, the PERCEPTION is that public transit issues are largely a minority issue.
Oh, and re: suburbia, yeah, talk to people west of 95, a lot of them would just as soon have the MBTA gone entirely.
People west of 95 for the
People west of 95 for the most part have no use for the T. It is natural for them not to care and I'm sure most people would agree if they lived out western part of the state and never had the desire or need to travel to Boston.
You seem to correlate minorities as being the reason the T is such a mess, I assume you mean no one wants to fund it because racisim?
Man, I disagree with that 100%.
So when we see employees abusing the system (it's well known to those of us who know T employees) we should keep quiet because....?
I also disagree with the notion that T employees are held up to a higher standard. People get just as upset with Fire Dept and Police Dept employee abuse. It's just not as common and those budgets are no where near the calamity that the T is becoming.
i'm not going to do this all for you
but i think you should read up on the history and planning of public transit and the relationship it has with minorities
And I've no time to do that
And I've no time to do that now, but are your really correlating the mess the T is in to racism?
I understand that public transportation serves lower income groups and it is their lifeline to jobs and appointments, etc. But, Boston today is an attractive place to live, right? Aren't the housing problems in Boston and the rising costs related to more people wanting to live close or in the city? Isn't the general rule of thumb that most of these people should or are shunning cars?
This is not a minority population boom and, that doesn't explain the Monday - Friday people going to work on the T. I'd wager that most are not minorities.
While true for a time ago, I would not say that today the funding mess is related to racism.
Can you back this up:
Can you back this up:
I think the fire and police budgets of all the cities and towns that are in the MBTA service area is pretty large. And both papers have detailed how many of them earn over $100,000 and have many stories of abuse (firefighters having people cover them for months, being on permanent disability while entering weightlifting competitions, dubious overtime. Its not all of them, of course, at the T or police, fire, convention center, highways, etc. But you and conservatives across the state and right wingers like Baker use it as an excuse to do something they want anyway, to curtail funding and operation of public transit. Its a double standard, deal with the issues of abuse, and all the abusers, but don't say the T needs to be scaled back and fares need to go up and funding halted or reduced, but with other state functions you are not calling for reducing police, fire, conventions, highways, etc. Its just conservatives using bad employee behaviors as an excuse to do what they want anyway- reduce public transit.
I disagree 100%, and that's
I disagree 100%, and that's OK.
why are you acting differently when its the T but not highways?
I don't want to turn a bling eye to it for any of these workers, but it seems people come out with solutions like raise fares, cut the budget, reduce service, when it comes to public transit, but I haven't heard you or others like you who rail against the T call for cutting police and fire budgets when abuse is shown, or closing highways or canceling expansions (Baker and Weld kept the construction going on the big dig when costs exploded, and put some of the debt on the T, now he is proposing to raise fares and has reduced service times and cancelled much needed expansion.
Why not raise tolls (well, finally START tolls) on 93 tunnel, or Storrow to help pay for the big construction project coming up there? No, instead its business as usual for freeways and massive fare increases (double what Patrick did in 8 years in one year of Bakey in office) for public transit users, cancel projects, reduce operating hours, and blame T workers.
No, because the T is in that
*double post*
That is not what I said. Not
That is not what I said. Not sure how long you've been around here, but there was much commotion about Big Dig expenses, employee's taking advantage of the system, same with cops and fire.
No one is picking on T employees unwarranted.
There is no double standard. People can get outraged at more than one thing at a time but it all boils down to public employees, don't it?
Sorry, but if you work in the public sector you shouldn't be surprised that you're held up to scrutiny. Yes it's lame, but joe taxpayer is paying you and he/she expects service.
maybe for people that get upset at being held up to scrutiny should get out of service oriented fields, especially public ones.
The point
The point isn't "employee X made so much money doing the something shady."
The real issue is an agency $5.5 billion in debt and contemplating another fare hike and service cuts has lax management systems that allow workers to approve their own OT requests, among other problems previously reported.
Sure, his pay isn't enough to make up the deficit, but these things add up.
Some here will defend this.
Some here will defend this. I can't. Employees signing off on their own OT, abuse of FMLA, record number of sick days last winter when the snow hit. (Excuses are like assholes, everybody's got one).
No, it's a public service industry providing, it seems, more of a service to connected employees rather than the public. And to the pols that paid back favors by loading up the system with connected people.
I am sure there are many hard working dedicated employees, but there are just too many jaw dropping revelations coming out even now.
Receivership. Make all management employees re apply (like the probation dept). It's been going on for too long to rectify this situation - decades upon decades of people looking the other way, allowing abuse, ignoring the future by never seemingly thinking ahead.
Sure, employee abuse is minimal to the overall hole that the T will never close, but it's too damning to the taxpayers and the rest of those that rely on the T. Optics go along way and every penny counts. I don't want to hear, "It's only $X million and in the scheme of things it isn't much". Yes the T has been loaded with debt and faces an uphill climb. I'd have more sympathy if I didn't read about this stuff.
There is no defense for any of this so yes, when people start screaming about needing more tax revenue - you don't think this kind of shit matters? Especially to those who have no access to the T?
There are numbers, and there are statistics
I was going to make my subject "lies, lies, and statistics" but I honestly have no gripe with you.
The Baker administration has been massaging the numbers, and this is another example. Last year, it was counting the percentage of time T employees were not working, conveniently counting things like mandatory training and prescheduled time off, merely subtracting from a workweek any time that was coded other than "worked" or whatever. When reporters started looking at the actual numbers compared to other systems, we were average. This year, after a year when maintenance workers were busting their asses slapping as many bandaids on the system as possible (fixing all the trains in February and March, making the system ready for the coming winter [remember the week-end closures] the rest of the year) they are griping about the OT costs.
Here are my 2 cents of this. First, the report states that the OT was valid, though it does question the distribution of it. The main issue, and I think this is important, is that anyone who gets overtime should get the approval of some level above them, which did not happen. Second, if the T has been doling out OT for years like this (remember, this past winter was not average), why are they being penny wise by keeping head count down while spending more than they would if they had proper staffing.
Funny ,art projects on
Funny ,art projects on extravagant burden Green Line Extension, no problemos. Worker overtime , Heavens to Murgatroyd ! Deflection at its best!
Sarbanes Oxley Audit
I would love to see the T put through a Sarbanes Oxley audit of their controls.
How did that work out for the
How did that work out for the Brothers Lehman ?
Now that he's retired
He can come back as an even higher priced consultant working for the MBTA as many retirees with an expertise in politics not transportation often do.
(Third) World Class Baby!
All the petty theft and corruption one would expect in a banana republic.