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Attorneys discuss how the election may impact laws

SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter

Published: November 4, 2016

On Tuesday, Nov. 8 voters will cast ballots in what is being called one of the most important presidential elections in the country’s history. While the election has been dominated by controversial revelations on both sides, it remains unclear exactly how a Clinton or Trump presidency would impact residents in Ohio and across the country.

Recently the Akron Legal News spoke with Jeff Smith, a partner in the management-side labor and employment firm Fisher Phillips and Rachel Reight, a partner in the employee rights firm Baasten McKinley & Co, to get their takes on how the outcome of the election might impact the federal minimum wage, paid leave, labor policy and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (commonly known as the Affordable Care Act/Obamacare).

What follows is a summary about where the candidates stand on the issues based on the information posted on their websites and their public statements. Both attorneys weighed in on the candidates’ positions, but declined to endorse either candidate.

Federal Minimum Wage

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has said she’ll work to get to a $15 minimum wage over time, with appropriate variations for regions with a higher cost of living. She is a strong advocate of the “Fight for $15,” and she also supports the Obama Administration’s expansion of overtime rules to millions more employees.

During a press conference in July Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said he would support an increase of “at least $10,” adding “I think that states should really call the shot.”

Reight said she is pleased that both candidates have policies that would “put more money in the pockets of working families.

“Raising the minimum wage does not damage job growth, but increases spending thereby creating higher demand that can increase profits for employers,” said Reight. “The increased minimum wage reduces poverty and ensures that economic growth is shared by the workforce.”

Smith said any increase in wages could harm employers since their earnings “do not necessarily increase just because they have to pay workers more.

“Employers are hesitant to agree to wage increases because it can negatively impact their bottom lines,” said Smith, who works out of the Cleveland office of Fisher Phillips.

Paid Leave

Clinton has proposed a plan that would allow workers to take “up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave to care for a new child or a seriously ill family member and up to 12 weeks of medical leave to recover from a serious illness or injury of their own.”

Under the proposal those on leave would get at least two-thirds of their current wages up to a ceiling. It covers women and men, whether they become parents through pregnancy, surrogacy or adoption. She said she would pay for the program by raising taxes on the wealthy.

Trump said he would provide six weeks of paid maternity leave for women who give birth and don’t receive paid leave from their employers. It would be administered through the unemployment insurance program, with the costs covered by eliminating fraud in that program.

“Any expansion of paid leave will help working families, in part, by protecting their jobs while they are on leave,” said Reight. “The employer experiences a cost savings overall because it reduces turnover and training costs when they are able to retain their more experienced employees.”

Even if an employer does not have to foot the bill for paid leave, Smith said it would still disrupt company workflow. “The smaller the employer and the longer the period of time a worker is out on leave, the harder it is on the employer,” said Smith.

Labor Policy

Clinton has vowed to protect workers from “employer misclassification, wage theft and other forms of exploitation” and to fight to ensure equal pay for women. She said she would reward companies that share profits with employees and encourages companies to invest in their workers through training, apprenticeships and by creating good jobs.

She plans to restore collecting bargaining rights for unions and would reject the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Trump has pledged to “create a dynamic booming economy that will create 25 million new jobs over the next decade.” Like Clinton, he would also reject the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which has not yet been ratified. He would also immediately renegotiate the terms of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) “to get a better deal for our workers.” If the NAFTA partners don’t agree to renegotiate, Trump would submit notice that the U.S intends to withdraw.

His position on collective bargaining is unclear, however he does support Right-to-Work laws that prohibit workers from being compelled to become union members as a requirement of the job.

Reight said Clinton’s stance on restoring and protecting collective bargaining rights “increases wages and improves working conditions.

“Clinton’s policies are more generous for workers,” said Reight. “According to Trump, he will reform the regulatory code and eliminate regulations. Some of the Department of Labor’s revisions in favor of workers could be jeopardized under a Trump presidency.”

“I think that a Trump presidency may bring with it less enforcement of some of the labor rules,” said Smith. “During the Obama presidency, the DOL revised a number of rules in favor of workers, including expanding the overtime laws to cover millions of additional workers.

“It is possible that we will see changes in the DOL that affect the implementation of these policies or perhaps lead to their rollback,” said Smith.

Affordable Care Act/Obamacare

Clinton has promised to defend the Affordable Care Act, building on its strengths, fixing its weaknesses and expanding health coverage to even more people. She has vowed to bring down out-of-pocket and prescription drug costs and has called for a “new, progressive refundable tax credit of up to $5,000 per family for excessive out-of-pocket costs.”

She would work to create a public option and supports allowing those 55 and older to buy into Medicare. She also plans to incentivize states to expand Medicaid and would allow families to buy health insurance on the health exchanges regardless of their immigration status.

Trump plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act immediately. He would allow individuals to set up and make tax-free contributions to Health Savings Accounts that could be used by any family member without a penalty. The accounts would be part of an individual’s estate and could be passed on without the beneficiary having to pay any taxes. Trump also wants to allow people to buy health insurance across state lines. In addition, Trump would make health insurance premiums tax deductible and provide Medicaid block grants to states so leaders could create “innovative Medicaid” programs.

Although Reight acknowledged the ACA is not perfect, she said it does provide coverage to millions of people who previously had no insurance. “If Obamacare is repealed, millions of people will lose their insurance and we do not have a detailed explanation on what would replace it and what, if any, consequences those changes would have on working families’ ability to have access to and pay for insurance.”

Smith said repealing the ACA would provide some short-term relief to employers. “I don’t think it would automatically reduce healthcare costs,” said Smith.

“Smaller employers have seen their premiums rise the most,” said Smith. “Large employers would also benefit because they would no longer be required to offer insurance to employees who work 30 hours or more,” he said. “Prior to Obamacare, employers could choose to cover employees working 32, 35 or 40 hours per week. The ACA brought the number down to 30 hours.

“I do question whether Trump would be able to repeal it since it would require Congressional approval,” said Smith.


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