CEO lays off workers due to Obama reelection?

whygohome

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/0 ... f=business

Go CEO's, Go!!!

Obamacare Layoffs: Georgia Businessman Claims He Fired Workers Because Obama Won

WASHINGTON -- A man claiming to be a Georgia small business owner said he fired some employees and cut hours for others because of President Barack Obama’s reelection.

The man identified himself as Stu, without giving a last name, and said he owns a small aviation services company. He told C-SPAN’s Washington Journal that he “simply can’t afford” to run his business if he has to comply with the the Affordable Care Act.

“Yesterday I called all my part-time employees in and said because Obama won I was cutting their hours from 30 to 25 a week so i would not fall under the Obamacare mandate,” Stu, who said he is from Williamson, Ga., told C-SPAN.

Under the Affordable Health Care Act, businesses with more than 50 workers are required to provide health care coverage for full-time employees or those working more than 30 hours per week. Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Red Lobster and The Olive Garden, announced in October that it would test a plan that would boost the number of employees on part-time status in a handful of its markets.

“I had to lay two full-timers off to get under the 50-person cap,” Stu told C-SPAN. “I tried to make sure that the people I had to lay off voted for Obama.”

Firing workers based on political affiliation may land employers in hot water. "It's possible that employees could have some protection under various laws that exist," said Risa Lieberwitz, professor of labor and employment law at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Federal law offers fines and imprisonment for anyone who "intimidates, threatens, coerces" someone "for the purpose of interfering with the right of such other person to vote or to vote as he may choose."

In the weeks leading up to the election, several employers sent notices to workers urging them to vote for Romney, or warning of potential problems if Obama won. Courts would have to determine whether such letters constitute "intimidation." The Supreme Court specifically protected employers' rights to distribute political information to workers in its Citizens United decision.

Retaliation for a vote may not qualify as intimidation. But employers who fire workers or cut their hours based on their vote could face additional legal threats from a few state and local laws, which specifically ban retaliating against employees based on their voting preferences.

"The best protection employees have is a collective bargaining agreement," Lieberwitz said, which require employers to have "just cause" to fire employees. Breaking the collective bargaining agreement would have legal consequences independent of federal and state laws. "A lesson for employees that comes out of these situations is how important it is for employees to unionize."

Stu isn’t the only business owner claiming he fired workers because of Obama’s reelection. “David,” a man who identified himself as a CEO, called a Las Vegas radio station Thursday and said he fired 22 workers because of Obama’s win.

Of course, one shouldn't extrapolate a trend from the rantings of anonymous callers. A survey of small business owners in October found that few would take drastic steps in response to the health care law. Instead, many said they would simply trim health care benefits.

The Obama administration has countered the Republican claim that health care reform is a "job killer," citing a study by the Urban Institute, which found that Obamacare would actually save small business owners money on insurance premiums.

David Siegel, the CEO of Westgate Resorts who infamously warned his workers about voting for Romney, actually handed out raises to his employees this week.

MayDay10

doesnt the ACA not really go into effect until 2014?

whygohome

Murray Energy Corp. CEO Enters 'Survival Mode' After Obama Reelection, Announces Layoffs

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/0 ... f=business

With President Obama sticking around for another four years, Murray Energy Corp. CEO Robert Murray has entered “survival mode,” announcing Wednesday that more than 160 employees at various subsidiaries will be laid off, in part due to Obama-related regulations and taxes, WTOV reports.

Murray outlined his views in a letter to employees, which included theories including that a new carbon tax will subsidize Obama supporters and lead to the "total destruction of the coal industry," perhaps by 2030.

“Lord, please forgive me and anyone with me in Murray Energy Corp. for the decisions that we are now forced to make to preserve the very existence of any of the enterprises that you have helped us build,” Murray reported read aloud during a group prayer with staff members Wednesday, according to The Washington Post. “We ask for your guidance in this drastic time with the drastic decisions that will be made to have any hope of our survival as an American business enterprise.”

The full transcript of Murray’s prayer and letter to employees is available at the Wheeling Intelligencer.

Murray, who campaigned with and donated to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney during the election season, drew criticism in August for allegedly requiring workers at an Ohio mine owned by the energy company to give up a day’s pay to attend a “mandatory” Romney campaign event. That incident, as well as allegations that he pressured employees to donate to the Romney campaign, led to the planning of an investigation by the Ohio Democratic Party.

Of course, a number of CEOs, Murray among them, publicly encouraged employee support for Romney before the election. Now Murray is among the smaller group of employers that have actually put their money where their mouths once were.

MayDay10

WTF?!? So those stories are supposed to make us hate Obama.

"Yeah, I had to fire people/reduce their hours because it was either that or provide them with healthcare."

Damn! That sure makes me hate... Obama.

pandora

whygohome wrote:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/08/obamacare-layoffs-georgia-obama_n_2095162.html?utm_hp_ref=business&utm_hp_ref=business

Go CEO's, Go!!!

Obamacare Layoffs: Georgia Businessman Claims He Fired Workers Because Obama Won

WASHINGTON -- A man claiming to be a Georgia small business owner said he fired some employees and cut hours for others because of President Barack Obama’s reelection.

The man identified himself as Stu, without giving a last name, and said he owns a small aviation services company. He told C-SPAN’s Washington Journal that he “simply can’t afford” to run his business if he has to comply with the the Affordable Care Act.

“Yesterday I called all my part-time employees in and said because Obama won I was cutting their hours from 30 to 25 a week so i would not fall under the Obamacare mandate,” Stu, who said he is from Williamson, Ga., told C-SPAN.

Under the Affordable Health Care Act, businesses with more than 50 workers are required to provide health care coverage for full-time employees or those working more than 30 hours per week. Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Red Lobster and The Olive Garden, announced in October that it would test a plan that would boost the number of employees on part-time status in a handful of its markets.

“I had to lay two full-timers off to get under the 50-person cap,” Stu told C-SPAN. “I tried to make sure that the people I had to lay off voted for Obama.”

Firing workers based on political affiliation may land employers in hot water. "It's possible that employees could have some protection under various laws that exist," said Risa Lieberwitz, professor of labor and employment law at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Federal law offers fines and imprisonment for anyone who "intimidates, threatens, coerces" someone "for the purpose of interfering with the right of such other person to vote or to vote as he may choose."

In the weeks leading up to the election, several employers sent notices to workers urging them to vote for Romney, or warning of potential problems if Obama won. Courts would have to determine whether such letters constitute "intimidation." The Supreme Court specifically protected employers' rights to distribute political information to workers in its Citizens United decision.

Retaliation for a vote may not qualify as intimidation. But employers who fire workers or cut their hours based on their vote could face additional legal threats from a few state and local laws, which specifically ban retaliating against employees based on their voting preferences.

"The best protection employees have is a collective bargaining agreement," Lieberwitz said, which require employers to have "just cause" to fire employees. Breaking the collective bargaining agreement would have legal consequences independent of federal and state laws. "A lesson for employees that comes out of these situations is how important it is for employees to unionize."

Stu isn’t the only business owner claiming he fired workers because of Obama’s reelection. “David,” a man who identified himself as a CEO, called a Las Vegas radio station Thursday and said he fired 22 workers because of Obama’s win.

Of course, one shouldn't extrapolate a trend from the rantings of anonymous callers. A survey of small business owners in October found that few would take drastic steps in response to the health care law. Instead, many said they would simply trim health care benefits.

The Obama administration has countered the Republican claim that health care reform is a "job killer," citing a study by the Urban Institute, which found that Obamacare would actually save small business owners money on insurance premiums.

David Siegel, the CEO of Westgate Resorts who infamously warned his workers about voting for Romney, actually handed out raises to his employees this week.

We knew Obamacare was bad for business. An employer can take the extra tax and not provide
coverage but most employers want to provide benefits to keep the cream of the crop.
So lower the workforce, still provide healthcare, farm work out to other service providers,
use contract laborers, put some employees on less than 30 hours per week.

Business does not have funds without limits. Its not like our government
that can just go print some more money without consequence.

Lines of credit are hard to get these days, collecting receivables down right scary.
There is not the base of strength that was there thanks to the terrible economy,
bankruptcies and the banking bailout.

whygohome

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/0 ... l+Business

Zane Tankel, Applebee's Franchisee, Says He Won't Hire Because Of Obamacare

An Applebee's New York area franchisee is the latest CEO to go public threatening drastic plans to avoid costs associated with the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare.

"We've calculated it will [cost] some millions of dollars across our system. So what does that say -- that says we won't build more restaurants. We won't hire more people," Zane Tankel, chairman and CEO of Apple-Metro, told Fox Business Network on Thursday.

Apple-Metro, which runs 40 Applebee's restaurants, employs from 80 to 300 people at each of its locations. Obamacare mandates that businesses with more than 50 workers must offer an approved insurance plan or pay a penalty of $2,000 for each full-time worker over 30 workers.

Most small businesses with 50 or more employees already do offer health insurance, notes John Arensmeyer, CEO and founder of Small Business Majority, a national small business advocacy organization. But restaurant chains typically are among the sliver of businesses not offering insurance to workers. Other food chains have commented publicly that they would take strong measures to avoid the effects of Obamacare, but so far none of them have taken that action.

Darden Restaurants, owner of Olive Garden and Red Lobster, said that it would increase the number of part-time workers to skirt the law, while Jimmy John Liautaud, founder of Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches chain, also recently told Fox Business News that he is considering cutting workers' hours.

Applebee's owner Tankel wouldn't go so far as saying he would lay off current employees or cut their hours to keep them part-time rather than pay for their health care, but he did hint that those were distinct possibilities. "The model's been set. I am sure all our people are watching this right now so I don't want to make any commitments one way or another," he said. "I want to simply say we are looking at it, we are evaluating. If it's possible to do without cutting people back, I am delighted to do it, but that also rolls back expansion, it rolls back hiring more people, and in a best-case scenario, we only shrink the labor force minimally. Best case."

"We have to do that. There's no other way we can survive it, because we think it will cost us 50 cents a sandwich. That's just the actual cost," Liautaud said. "If you have 40 or 50 employees at a restaurant, and the penalty is $2,000, and you're going to pay $80,000 or $100,000 penalty, there goes the profit in your restaurant."

Tankel also felt he had little choice in what he called a "fragile environment" but to cut employees or their hours: "In this environment, you can't raise prices, particularly in our space. It's not possible. Efficiencies, hopefully we got all of our efficiencies. We've just faced three terrible years in the environment and the economy. We've been enforcing and putting more and more in every year. So then it's cut back on overhead."

Christine Eibner, senior economist at RAND Corp. who has analyzed health insurance costs for small businesses and studied the health care law, doesn't think cutting hours is the only option firms have. "They could, if they wanted, opt to provide health insurance to these individuals," Eibner told The Huffington Post in an email. "Most economists believe that -- one way or another -- the costs of the health insurance are ultimately born by workers, such as through reductions in wages or other benefits."

"The decision is complicated, and may depend on factors such as workers' eligibility for exchange subsidies, whether it is plausible to reduce wages or other benefits to cover health insurance costs, and worker preferences for wages versus health coverage," Eibner added. "The penalties for not having insurance will likely increase workers' relative preference for insurance over wages, which could push some firms toward offering."

The Huffington Post tried to reach Tankel and Liautaud for further explanation about their decisions and if and when they planned to act on them, but neither immediately responded to requests for comment.

Whether their comments were made publicly to sincerely express financial desperation or to simply attempt to tarnish Obamacare, Arensmeyer said it seems "counterproductive to criticize" the law at this point. "Now that the election is over, if there's any political motivation behind it, I'm not sure what the objective is," he said. "It's the law of the land, and there's no chance it's going to be repealed after the reelection of the president and the Supreme Court decision earlier this year, and we think it's time for all businesses to come together and figure out how to make this work."

The furor over Obamacare has come with a price. Arensmeyer said the organization's polling and outreach shows business leaders' understanding of the law is "very poor, and that's because of all the negative noise and the lack of focus on the facts. This has been highly politicized, and there has been a lot more heat than light shown on this whole issue over the last two and a half years," he said. "There has been way too much effort spent criticizing it and way too little effort figuring out how to make it work and getting it implemented."

pandora

MayDay10 wrote:

WTF?!? So those stories are supposed to make us hate Obama.

"Yeah, I had to fire people/reduce their hours because it was either that or provide them with healthcare."

Damn! That sure makes me hate... Obama.

Those business owners are being honest, they are telling others what must be done
to keep afloat. What is happening to them and their employees.
You are considering they can not afford to give coverage, yes?
that the law states they must or pay penalties.

With each employee laid off comes more tax added to both Futa and
Suta. This has skyrocketed for small business due to massive layoffs.

While employees have enjoyed less SS and Med tax the past few years
employers who must match have remained at the higher rate.
Add in Local taxes, State taxes, Federal taxes, in an economy like this
businesses do not need more taxes they need less :fp:

This is Obama for you. Don't tell me he cares about my business...
I didn't even build it remember no I've just been fucking around for twenty years
on a roller coaster of political and economic tides.
Was I hoping for a different tide yes I was. Though I did not give my vote to Romney.

MayDay10

how much money do you imagine these same people contributed to campaigns?

MayDay10

whygohome wrote:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/09/zane-tankel-applebees-obamacare_n_2094568.html?ir=Small+Business

Zane Tankel, Applebee's Franchisee, Says He Won't Hire Because Of Obamacare

An Applebee's New York area franchisee is the latest CEO to go public threatening drastic plans to avoid costs associated with the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare.

"We've calculated it will [cost] some millions of dollars across our system. So what does that say -- that says we won't build more restaurants. We won't hire more people," Zane Tankel, chairman and CEO of Apple-Metro, told Fox Business Network on Thursday.

Apple-Metro, which runs 40 Applebee's restaurants, employs from 80 to 300 people at each of its locations. Obamacare mandates that businesses with more than 50 workers must offer an approved insurance plan or pay a penalty of $2,000 for each full-time worker over 30 workers.

Most small businesses with 50 or more employees already do offer health insurance, notes John Arensmeyer, CEO and founder of Small Business Majority, a national small business advocacy organization. But restaurant chains typically are among the sliver of businesses not offering insurance to workers. Other food chains have commented publicly that they would take strong measures to avoid the effects of Obamacare, but so far none of them have taken that action.

Darden Restaurants, owner of Olive Garden and Red Lobster, said that it would increase the number of part-time workers to skirt the law, while Jimmy John Liautaud, founder of Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches chain, also recently told Fox Business News that he is considering cutting workers' hours.

Applebee's owner Tankel wouldn't go so far as saying he would lay off current employees or cut their hours to keep them part-time rather than pay for their health care, but he did hint that those were distinct possibilities. "The model's been set. I am sure all our people are watching this right now so I don't want to make any commitments one way or another," he said. "I want to simply say we are looking at it, we are evaluating. If it's possible to do without cutting people back, I am delighted to do it, but that also rolls back expansion, it rolls back hiring more people, and in a best-case scenario, we only shrink the labor force minimally. Best case."

"We have to do that. There's no other way we can survive it, because we think it will cost us 50 cents a sandwich. That's just the actual cost," Liautaud said. "If you have 40 or 50 employees at a restaurant, and the penalty is $2,000, and you're going to pay $80,000 or $100,000 penalty, there goes the profit in your restaurant."

Tankel also felt he had little choice in what he called a "fragile environment" but to cut employees or their hours: "In this environment, you can't raise prices, particularly in our space. It's not possible. Efficiencies, hopefully we got all of our efficiencies. We've just faced three terrible years in the environment and the economy. We've been enforcing and putting more and more in every year. So then it's cut back on overhead."

Christine Eibner, senior economist at RAND Corp. who has analyzed health insurance costs for small businesses and studied the health care law, doesn't think cutting hours is the only option firms have. "They could, if they wanted, opt to provide health insurance to these individuals," Eibner told The Huffington Post in an email. "Most economists believe that -- one way or another -- the costs of the health insurance are ultimately born by workers, such as through reductions in wages or other benefits."

"The decision is complicated, and may depend on factors such as workers' eligibility for exchange subsidies, whether it is plausible to reduce wages or other benefits to cover health insurance costs, and worker preferences for wages versus health coverage," Eibner added. "The penalties for not having insurance will likely increase workers' relative preference for insurance over wages, which could push some firms toward offering."

The Huffington Post tried to reach Tankel and Liautaud for further explanation about their decisions and if and when they planned to act on them, but neither immediately responded to requests for comment.

Whether their comments were made publicly to sincerely express financial desperation or to simply attempt to tarnish Obamacare, Arensmeyer said it seems "counterproductive to criticize" the law at this point. "Now that the election is over, if there's any political motivation behind it, I'm not sure what the objective is," he said. "It's the law of the land, and there's no chance it's going to be repealed after the reelection of the president and the Supreme Court decision earlier this year, and we think it's time for all businesses to come together and figure out how to make this work."

The furor over Obamacare has come with a price. Arensmeyer said the organization's polling and outreach shows business leaders' understanding of the law is "very poor, and that's because of all the negative noise and the lack of focus on the facts. This has been highly politicized, and there has been a lot more heat than light shown on this whole issue over the last two and a half years," he said. "There has been way too much effort spent criticizing it and way too little effort figuring out how to make it work and getting it implemented."

Or you could just charge $0.01 more for your fucking shitty meals that contribute massively to the obesity rate which in turn causes healthcare cost to sky rocket for everyone.

brianlux

I hope when all the anger is vented I hope we can all get down to taking care of business. Otherwise were all just walking around in a circular room looking for a corner to piss in.

pandora

brianlux wrote:

I hope when all the anger is vented I hope we can all get down to taking care of business. Otherwise were all just walking around in a circular room looking for a corner to piss in.

I've witnessed a man pissing in a corner not a pretty sight so

I must agree

pandora

MayDay10 wrote:

how much money do you imagine these same people contributed to campaigns?

not as much as they pay in taxes

chadwick

if i worked for a person like this i'd quit before the bastard could fire me. i'd then (in my fantacies) burn his home(s) to the ground, dump shit & urine into his swimming pool(s), & finally i'd like to fart or shit on his thigh in a very packed elevator at his place of business... stainy brown strikes again you piece of shit!

chadwick

pandora wrote:

I've witnessed a man pissing in a corner not a pretty sight so

I must agree

i've witnessed a woman drop a deuce in a corner not a pretty sight so

i do not have to agree

pjradio

heres another... http://www.wlky.com/news/money/Coal-com ... paign=wlky

chadwick

pjradio wrote:

heres another... http://www.wlky.com/news/money/Coal-com ... paign=wlky

i recognize that guy. men die in his mines. i betcha he still has a shit ton of money and i betcha he wipes his keester with $100s & $50s

pandora

I don't think business is happy.

I haven't seen money come in since the election ...
just a trickle check...
customers who paid within 30 days are going past due
60 days approaching 75.
I in turn can't release over 25 checks I've written and I'm getting calls.
Hope this is just a post shockwave cause when people worry they keep their money
close and do not spend or pay down payables.

And what's up with the stock market?

http://www.openmarket.org/2012/11/16/ba ... -election/

fuck me ...
gotta love this damn rollercoaster of biz

SatansFuton

I find it hilarious that John Schnatter (aka Papa John, one of the biggest D-bags I ever met) is using this as an excuse. I worked for Papa John's, and met the man, and saw the shady crap that went on there that was corporate policy. It was actually corporate policy for managers to make up BS incidents on employee evaluations (on the grunt level, drivers, hourly employees, etc) so as to not give them raises and so there would be documentation to fire people so they could not collect unemployment.

RFTC

too fucking funny, people defending this idiot that politicizes his decision to to layoff workers and then proudly announces it. any respectable person who has ever owned a company that has dealt w/layoffs feels a sense of shame w/that decision. and blaming obama for your DSO, get a better AR person or just keep blaming obama as your business plunges into bankruptcy.

if the market stays rocky, you have a choice, short it or go defensive in your positions. i laugh my ass off at all the people crying about this or that instead of looking within to make their situations better.

and p.s. if your a small business owner w/< 25 employees you will get a tax credit of up to 50% by next year on your medical costs. now that's some fucking change my business can believe in.

pandora

RFTC wrote:

too fucking funny, people defending this idiot that politicizes his decision to to layoff workers and then proudly announces it. any respectable person who has ever owned a company that has dealt w/layoffs feels a sense of shame w/that decision. and blaming obama for your DSO, get a better AR person or just keep blaming obama as your business plunges into bankruptcy.

if the market stays rocky, you have a choice, short it or go defensive in your positions. i laugh my ass off at all the people crying about this or that instead of looking within to make their situations better.

and p.s. if your a small business owner w/< 25 employees you will get a tax credit of up to 50% by next year on your medical costs. now that's some fucking change my business can believe in.

Business is business and of course no owner wants to lay people off but we do to keep
a job for some when times get tough.

When an owner is forced to lay off due to questionable government policy
that is another story and speaking up about that is necessary,
that is certainly not proudly announcing but do you see it as such because
you favor Obama?

If a business owner can't afford health insurance at all for their employees
50% is no help at all.

If you have to let some go to just afford it that is no help to the business owner
nor the employee not to mention the government who is feeding another unemployed person.

If you have to put workers on part time to avoid the expense that is no help to the employee
his paycheck was just cut in half, something most people these days can not survive.
So they will seek another part time job. No health plan forthcoming.

If you do not hire and use the services of other businesses instead that does not help
those unemployed looking for work. They have no job, no health plan
and are getting fed by the government.

And finally the tactics some business owners will be doing will be to avoid bankruptcy
because indeed policies made are not bringing the economy back at any rate worth noticing,
and lots of companies are in serious trouble and can not survive another hit.