    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
    [March 22, 1997]
    [Pages 346-347]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    March 22, 1997

        Good morning. I'm glad to be back at the microphone this morning
    after relying on the Vice President to fill in for me last Saturday. My
    knee is healing just fine, and I'm happy to report that I've just
    completed a successful summit meeting with President Boris Yeltsin of
    Russia in Helsinki, Finland. Together we're building a strong United
    States-Russia relationship to meet the challenges of the 21st century:
    building a democratic, undivided Europe at peace; leading the world away
    from the nuclear threat; forging new ties of trade and investment that
    will benefit all our people.
        Today I want to talk with you about how we can work together to
    strengthen America's working families and to help them meet their
    responsibilities both at work and at home. We have made significant
    progress in this area with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.
    That was landmark legislation, and I was very proud that it was the
    first bill I signed as President. But I'm even more proud of the impact
    this law has had on the everyday lives of working families.
        Since its enactment, millions of Americans have been able to take
    unpaid leave to care for a newborn child or to be with a family member
    who's sick. I know that many Americans would have lost their jobs if it
    weren't for the family leave law.
        With new pressures on families in the way they work and live, we
    have to do even more to give people the chance to be good workers and
    good parents. That's why I proposed expanding the Family and Medical
    Leave Act so that workers can take time off to attend teacher
    conferences or to take a child for a medical checkup. I have challenged
    the Congress to pass legislation that will do just that this year, and I
    have high hopes that they will.
        This morning I want to talk about another way to strengthen our
    working families. I have a plan that offers employees this simple
    choice: If you work overtime, you can be paid time and a half, just as
    the law now requires, or if you want, you can take that payment in time,
    an hour and a half off for every hour of overtime you work. Simply put,
    you can choose money in the bank or time on the clock. Comp time can be
    used for a vacation, an extended maternity leave, or to spend more time
    with your children or your parents.
        We can give employees in American business more flexibility. That
    serves everyone's interests. But we must make sure that as we give
    greater flexibility, we do it in a way that's good for both business and
    employees.
        Unfortunately, a version of comp time legislation that is moving
    through Congress now would take the wrong approach. It could actually
    leave working families worse off than today. Strong comp-time
    legislation gives employees the choice of when to take their overtime
    pay in money or in time off from work. But under

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    the congressional majority's proposal, employees aren't really
    guaranteed that choice. There are no effective safeguards to stop an
    employer from telling an employee who needs a paycheck more than family
    time that he or she has no choice: ``You work overtime this week, then
    I'll give you less time next week.''
        Strong comp-time legislation would give employees the choice of when
    they take time off. That's the best way to strengthen families and to
    give parents more flexibility. But the congressional majority's plan
    would make it simply too easy for employers to tell workers they cannot
    take the comp time they have earned.
        Under strong comp-time legislation, the time off you have earned is
    just that, time off. But under the congressional majority's plan,
    employees who take comp time could be forced to work extra hours at
    night or on the weekend to make up the time without any overtime pay.
    That means if you take off a Friday that you have earned by working
    overtime, your employer could simply make you work Saturday without
    paying overtime because you haven't worked your full 40-hour week.
        Above all, strong comp-time legislation preserves the protection of
    our 40-hour week, which has been the law now for most of this century.
    Today the law says if you are an hourly worker and you work longer than
    40 hours, you get paid time and a half for overtime. Our plan would give
    you the choice of taking an hour and a half off for every hour you work
    instead. But under the congressional majority's plan, some employees who
    work an extra hour would get only an hour off, less overtime than they
    would be eligible for today. That's money out of their pocket.
        The vast majority of our employers will be fair to their workers
    under any system. But as we modernize our laws to fit a changing
    workplace, we have to uphold historic safeguards for all our employees.
    Giving workers the real choice of taking time off as overtime pay is
    good for our families. It will help all Americans balance the demands of
    home and work. But it's employees and their families, not employers, who
    should choose if, when, and how they take and use comp time.
        Congress should pass expanded family leave and a strong comp-time
    bill. The moment a responsible comp-time bill hits my desk, I will
    gladly sign it. It will be good for workers, good for business, good for
    the economy, and strong in the building of our families. But let me also
    be clear: I will have to veto any legislation that fails to guarantee
    real choice for employees, real protection against employer abuse, and
    real preservation of fair labor standards including the 40-hour week.
        It's time for us to join together to give America's families the
    help they need to succeed on the job and in the home. Let's pass comp-
    time legislation, but let's do it right.
        Thanks for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 2:10 p.m. on March 21 at Mantyniemi,
    the residence of President Martti Ahtisaari of Finland in Helsinki, for
    broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on March 22.