◼ Obama administration to contractors: Hold off announcing layoffs until after the election and taxpayers will cover your fines and costs
According to the WARN Act, employers must provide 60 days notice to workers, labor union reps, local governments, etc., in advance of plant closings and mass layoffs that fall within the parameters of the Act.
Defense contractor layoffs due to sequestration cuts (that Obama is pictured above announcing in January of this year) are looming January 2, 2013. This means that federal law will require those companies to issue thousands of “you’re out of a job” notices mere days before the November election. If you’re the Obama administration this makes you more nervous than watching Joe Biden start to talk about Dunkin’ Donuts. What to do? Simple — ask the contractors to ignore the law and promise them that taxpayers will cover possible fines and extra costs associated with any subsequent non-compliance judgments...
Read the memo for yourself (PDF). The federal government is offering to pay companies to violate federal law so as to not spoil one man’s re-election by exposing him to the fallout from the implementation of his own plan, and it’s all right there in an official memo for all to see (transparency promise: delivered)....
It’s been asked: This is a big deal. So why isn’t it on the front page of every major newspaper in America?...
◼ Lockheed accepts Obama’s ‘guidance’ and will delay sending tens of thousands of layoff notices until after the election - Michelle Malkin
...the Obama administration has offered to cover expenses (court-ordered penalties, severence costs, etc) for contractors willing to ignore the WARN Act by delaying sending layoff notices to tens of thousands of their employees who will likely be hit by Pentagon budget cuts....
What’s not being answered is this: The Obama administration is arguing that the WARN Act isn’t applicable in cases involving sequestration. If that’s true, why are they putting taxpayers on the hook to cover costs the WARN Act mandates if that law doesn’t apply to this situation?
◼ ALG praises Sen. Graham for denouncing Obama lawlessness - ALG
Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today praised South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, who denounced an Obama Administration move to reimburse the legal fees of defense contractors that do not follow federal requirements to give 60 days notice to employees of layoffs.
The layoffs are set to occur for contractors expecting cuts in the sequester budget Congress adopted last year. The notices would have been issued just days before the Nov. 6 election, an outcome thought to be politically damaging to Obama.
"I will do everything in my power to make sure not one taxpayer dollar is spent reimbursing companies for failure to comply with WARN Act," Graham said in an exclusive interview with The Hill. "That is so beyond the pale — I think it's patently illegal."
Already, Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems and other contractors have cancelled plans to notify employees of impending layoffs thanks to the Obama promise to reimburse legal fees derived from failure to follow the law.
◼ Obama's own plan, announced in January: Obama announces Pentagon budget cuts
