Feminist Daily News Wire
February-11-13

VA Governor Limit Work Hours to Avoid Paying for Obamacare

As part of Virginia's 2013 Budget, Governor Bob McDonnell has limited the amount of hours an hourly employee of the state can work in a week in an attempt to avoid paying for healthcare as required by the Affordable Care Act.

The VA budget would limit hourly workers to a maximum of 29 hours per week. Under the Affordable Care Act, an employer (in this case, the state of Virginia) must provide healthcare to anyone working 30 hours or more a week. This limitation appears in both the state House and Senate versions of the budget passed last week. By limiting the number of hours hourly wage workers can work, the state could avoid spending $110 million a year in health benefits.

According to the Virginian Pilot, the sector that could face the hardest challenge under the new limitations is adjunct faculty and community colleges. Adjunct professors are often paid a one-time fee for each course taught, but are still considered hourly wage employees. With the new changes, adjunct faculty could lose a third of their current wages, despite having an almost full course load.

Media Resources: ThinkProgress 2/11/2013; Virginian Pilot 2/8/2013; Virginia's Legislative Information System

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