1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

TV folks expect pay for OT, sue

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by I'll never tell, Feb 11, 2014.

  1. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    We still use pen-and-ink time cards for reporters, although the rest of the building now uses time clocks. I'm scared to death they'll start making us use the clock. It'd be a nightmare for me. I work from home sometimes (50 miles from the office), cover games closer to home when I can, or go straight from an assignment to home to write or to an assignment across town from the office before pulling a desk shift. I work three hours one day, 12-14 another. Sometimes regular 9-5 hours, sometimes finishing at midnight.
    Trying to punch a time clock would be a logistical nightmare. How the hell can a reporter make that work with the hours and far-flung assignments we have? Going back to the office to punch a time clock could literally add 30 minutes to my day in some cases.
     
  2. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    Our paper was sold recently. Under the old ownership, which was struggling mightily financially, I was willing to forego some overtime. It was a few hours a week that turned into "rollover" hours. If I worked 43 one week, I'd start the next week with 3. Eventually, I figured a slow week would come where I'd get an extra day off or those extra hours would catch up and pull me up to 40.
    They never did, but it was fine. We were family-owned, so there was a sense of taking one for the greater good. I'm not too resentful.

    Then the new owners took over, slashed two-thirds of the staff within a month, and have continually looked for ways to rein in costs. I get that a lot of it is a necessary evil to get the books in line -- we were a flickering candle under the old ownership -- but they can go screw if they think I'm working unpaid overtime.
    You want the job done without it? Hire somebody else to help.
    To their credit, though, the new owners haven't balked at paying overtime. They're just trying to get it to reasonable levels (maybe 3-5 hours a week instead of 10-15). Of course, at the same time, they're pushing us to produce more and more local copy and having reporters paginate pages and take photos, so I'm not sure how they expect this all to balance out.
     
  3. Bradley Guire

    Bradley Guire Well-Known Member

    If I had an early start and didn't go straight to the office and instead went straight to some far-flung county courthouse, I would text or email my editor my starting time. Supervisors could adjust the time because it was web browser-based, and they had to sign off on every employee's time card weekly anyway. When I had time, I checked it every week before approving. If it didn't add up, I asked for it to be fixed. Just required a little organization, but it was the best system I found for not being a slave to the office but getting my money.
     
  4. I Should Coco

    I Should Coco Well-Known Member

    I'm aware of that. It was also illegal for the managing editor to pass around an employee handbook with a sheet we all had to sign at the end: "I understand that I can be dismissed from my job at any time, with or without notice."

    It was at that point I turned in my two-week notice.

    And years later, I didn't feel too bad when the newspaper was bought out by a chain, and the office I used to work in was leveled for new condos.
     
  5. Baron Scicluna

    Baron Scicluna Well-Known Member

    I wouldn't have even bothered with the two-week notice, since, after all, they could dump you without any notice.
     
  6. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    Who said anything about bad pay?
     
  7. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    That's not at all how it works. The minute I fill out a time card with 20 hours of unapproved overtime, they will tell me that I need to request overtime in the future. Then they will make sure I am not working more than my 40 hours and stall my career, maybe even moving me to a much shittier job in the process.

    Yes, that sucks. But I actually do like my job.
     
  8. murphyc

    murphyc Well-Known Member

    Speaking of Fisher and Oregon: last spring Fisher, which already owned the CBS station in Eugene (which in turn provided newscasts to the Fox station in town) bought out the NBC station in Eugene. From what I heard, 45 of the 50 employees at the NBC station were fired. The ABC station in town wisely scooped up the two main (and popular) anchors. I believe Sinclair came in the fall and bought up the Fisher stations.
     
  9. Baron Scicluna

    Baron Scicluna Well-Known Member

    Most businesses will tell you that you have to get OT in advance and don't like surprises. My point is that your career isn't stalling if you only work 40 hours. Your career is already stalling because you're working an extra 20 hours per week for free.

    Hence, my point of whatever higher job that you aspire to better pay considerably more than the money that you are currently sacrificing. And that your company better be stable enough so that you have time to actually get to that promotion. Otherwise, you're actually losing money on the deal and risking spending considerable time and energy for nothing more than a pink slip.

    And if they threaten to demote you, then tell then you're next phone call is to the Dept. of Labor. Have a tape recorder on you when they make that threat.
     
  10. JayFarrar

    JayFarrar Well-Known Member

    If you work at a place that requires pre-approval of overtime, determine your cut day and plan accordingly.

    If you get 40 hours in 4 days, don't come to work on the fifth day. If you get to 40 hours in three and half days, then ask for overtime and if they say no, leave.

    If you have a chance to exceed 40 hours while on assignment, then tell your boss and if they say don't work overtime, leave when you get to 40 hours.

    If that means your assignment isn't over and you haven't filed, then you don't file.

    Again, it isn't personal, it is professional. Newspapers seem to be really good at saying that it is all family until they have to lay people off and then it becomes a business.

    So treat it like a business and you'll be much happier in the long run.
     
  11. daemon

    daemon Well-Known Member

    From a reporter's perspective…

    You can do most jobs in 40 hours. You can't do them well in 40 hours. Every place I have worked would rather you do the job at whatever quality 40 hours accommodates than pay you the overtime required to do the job well. Problem is, you work your way up the ladder by doing the job well. So in most cases, it really is your choice. Is it fair? I don't know. Who says 40 hours is a fair week's work? As the kids say, it is what it is. In most non-unionized situations, bossman can pretty much say, "If you can't do the job in 40 hours, then we will find somebody who can." This is true in most lines of work. If you don't think they can find somebody who can do it in 40 hours, then call their bluff. If they can't, you'll remain employed. If not, you won't. In which case, you can go find a job that pays a market rate that is up to your liking.

    I always looked at the hours I "donated" over 40 as an investment in my future. Back in the day, it was sensible to think this way, because going from a $25,000 a year job at a 20,000 circulation paper to a $50,000 a year job at a 100,000 circ paper to a $75,000 a year job at a 250,000 circ paper was realistic. I'm not sure it is sensible today. In fact, I'm pretty sure it is the opposite of sensible, since the $75,000 a year jobs are now $50,000 a year jobs, and there are fewer of them. So it's a lot less likely that the time you invest in yourself will end up paying off.
     
  12. RickStain

    RickStain Well-Known Member

    It's a tragedy of the commons. If one person works 60 hours and bills 40 because he wants to give himself good clips or because he loves the work, it's no big deal. If 30% of the industry does it, then they are screwing over everyone.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page