The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "Overtime" ...
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Wage Theft In the Fields
American farmworkers have often experienced egregious abuses, but nothing is more pervasive, nor harder to ferret out, than the wage theft that results from a practice called farm-labor contracting. Found in the fields of every handpicked crop in the country, farm-labor contractors not only provide growers with crews, but also handle wages and manage everything from verifying immigration status to providing workers' compensation. The problem is, the contractors systematically underpay the workers. “Farm labor contractors,” says writer Tracie McMillan, “give American produce growers what companies like China's Foxconn offer to Apple: a way to outsource a costly and complicated part of the business, often saving money in the process and creating a firewall between the brand and the working conditions under which its products are made.” And yet McMillan — a fellow with both the Knight-Wallace program at University of Michigan, and the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism at Brandeis University — found that enforcement is rare: In 2008, inspectors visited only 1,499 of the more than 2 million farms nationwide; in 2011, California inspectors found just seven minimum wage violations on the state’s 86,000 farms. Fines are minimal: “It's cheaper to violate the law than to follow the law,” says one farmworker advocate. And wage theft is tedious to prove, requiring inspectors to interview workers, analyze time cards, and collect payroll records. That's why workers and their advocates in California are counting on a lawsuit brought earlier this year on behalf of two farmworkers against the contractors who hired them—as well as the growers who outsourced the work. The suit alleges that the contractors routinely undercounted the hours worked, failed to pay minimum wage or overtime, failed to provide safe or sanitary working conditions, and housed the workers in unsafe and unsanitary living quarters. The “collective action” suit—open to anyone who can prove he or she experienced the same treatment—may cover thousands of workers and deliver awards substantial enough to deter other employers from the same practices.
Tags: Labor; farms; working conditions; wage
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Public Salary Database
The reporters set out to track the total cost of employment for state workers, tracking everything from the amount of taxpayer money that goes toward health benefits to overtime and even retirement benefits.
Tags: state workers; employment; taxpayer; overtime; retirement
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Montgomery County Police Make Overtime Millions in 911 Call Center
This story looks at the overtime pay in the 911 call center of the Montgomery County Police Department. Over the last five years, four officers made over a million dollars in overtime.
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Pasco County Housing Authority
WSTP-TV discovered that Pasco Housing Authority was being severely mismanaged. The residents living in the housing projects were being ignored and abused because of incompetence and willful misuse of state and federal funds. They were also being retaliated against for bringing up problems at their homes to the board. Not only was the executive director having sex at the office with people who worked for her, but she was also padding her paramour's overtime sheets.
Tags: Housing Projects
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Out-of-Bounds Overtime: Illegal Payments
Despite Ohio state law forbidding overtime payment to state administrators, this investigation found it was rampant. In fact, WBNS-TV uncovered two million dollars in unlawful payments.
Tags: overtime; payment; corruption; administrators; state law
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Iron Men of Overtime
“Two sheriff’s deputies nearly tripled their pay through tremendous amounts of overtime, mostly teaching at a community college”. These deputies would work a great deal of overtime hours, over consecutive days and receive a large amount of overtime pay. After all this became visible, the sheriff put an end to overtime pay through the college, but at this point the deputies had already enhanced their annual pay for three years. Further, it increases their pension benefits for decades to come.
Tags: law enforcement; police department; police academy; Michael Asmolik; Richard Flanagan Jr.; Kevin Walsh; income; time sheet
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"Burning Through Money"
Oklahoma City firefighters claim they are "busier than ever," therefore the millions of dollars made working overtime is justified. The Oklahoman, however, finds that the majority of their calls are false alarms suggesting firefighters are appearing busier than they are to "justify" higher salaries.
Tags: firefighters; overtime; raise; Keith Bryant; Oklahoma Fire Department
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Burning Through Money
Oklahoma City firefighters are asking for millions in overtime pay due to their busy schedules, but the city fears they are artificially boosting their workload by responding to more medical calls and chasing false alarms. "Burning through Money" investigates the sour relationship between the city and the firefighter union.
Tags: firefighter; oklahoma city; union; overtime; pay increase; false alarms; money; firefighters; salaries;
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Cuts Put Strain on Park Police
The number of full-time police officers at New York State Parks has decreased the past five years, along with increases in more "serious" offenses. Several areas have minimal or no police coverage, and some officers are working extended shifts as a result.
Tags: cops; beach patrol; park and recreation; overtime; Long Island; Bethpage; Caumsett; Hempstead; Belmont Lake;
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State Employees Salaries (Balancing Act)
This series analyzes the salaries of Minnesota's state employees and found that in the year before the governor instituted a state hiring freeze, about a third of the state work force earned more than $50 million in overtime pay. A handful of employees earned more in overtime pay than in regular wages. The analysis supported claims by employee unions that understaffing was driving up overtime costs. The series also revealed that faculty at state colleges and universities are earning significant bonuses for teaching online courses beyond their full-time course load. Two St. Cloud State University professors rank among the highest-paid state employees in Minnesota.
Tags: salary records; state government; state officials; hiring freeze; understaffing; wages; overtime costs; employee compensation