Cass Ballenger: “this amendment clarifies and adds a number of employee-protections which will ensure that the choice of comp time is…”

“this amendment clarifies and adds a number of employee-protections which will ensure that the choice of comp time is truly the employee's choice and to give employees control over when comp time is used or cashed in. First, the amendment requires a private sector employer to give an employee 30 days notice prior to cashing out the employee's accrued comp time. However, employers may only cash out accrued comp time in excess of 80 hours, unless the cash out is in response to an employee request. There has been some concern expressed about the fact that would an employer could cash out comp time. But, an employer is not required to offer comp time--so to offer it and then, in effect retract it, in the absence of a very compelling reason to do so, would not be a very sensible policy for an employer. The amendment addresses this concern by assuring that the employer could not cash out the first 80 hours of accrued comp time, unless the employee requests it. Second, the amendment clarifies that an employee may withdraw from a comp time agreement with an employer at any time. Nothing in the bill currently prohibits an employee from doing so, but I have added language which explicitly gives the employee that right. Third, the amendment would require employers to provide employees with 30 days notice prior to withdrawing a policy of offering comp time.”