WASHINGTON, DC—The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) issued the following statement after the U.S. House of Representatives passed The Save American Workers Act (H.R. 2575):
“Today’s passage of The Save American Workers Act is an important step towards providing much-needed stability for hotels, inns and resorts,” stated AH&LA President/CEO Katherine Lugar. “Serving our guests is a 24/7 operation, and as such flexibility on scheduling is a critical component. The current 30-hour definition not only undermines that flexibility, but provides an arbitrary threshold that would inevitably lead many small business to reduce the number of hours below 30 per week. As a result, the law would inject uncertainty into their team members’ work schedules and in many instances necessitate working extra jobs to make up the income shortfall.
“The House of Representatives has shown with today’s vote they recognize the importance of a traditional 40-hour definition to hard-working men and women and their employers across the country – many of which, including a large portion of our industry, are small businesses,” she continued. “If enacted, lodging employees will have more certainty about their incomes, and lodging can continue driving economic growth. We urge the Senate to take equally swift action and pass its version of this legislation, the 40 Hours is Full-Time Act (S. 1188) introduced by Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN), and encourage the President to sign this important change into law.”