SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. is reducing hours for thousands of part-time workers, a move that would allow the Orlando-based theme-park owner to avoid offering those employees medical insurance under the federal government's health-care overhaul.
SeaWorld confirmed the move Monday in a brief written statement to the Orlando Sentinel. The company operates 11 theme parks across the United States and has about 22,000 employees — nearly 18,000 of whom are part-time or seasonal workers. It has more than 4,000 part-time and seasonal workers in Central Florida.
Under a new corporate policy, SeaWorld will schedule part-time workers for no more than 28 hours a week, down from a previous limit of 32 hours a week. The new cap is expected to go into effect by November.
With the reduced hours, those employees would not be classified as full-time workers under the Affordable Care Act, the health-care overhaul championed by President Barack Obama and signed into law in 2010.
A central provision of that sweeping legislation will require large employers to offer comprehensive and affordable health insurance to all employees who work an average of at least 30 hours a week. The requirement, aggressively opposed by business-lobbying groups, was supposed to take effect this year but has been delayed until 2015.
In its written statement, SeaWorld said the change "is intended to bring consistency to the part-time designation across the SeaWorld Parks system." It would not say whether the federal health-care law was a factor.
SeaWorld also would not say how many of its part-time employees would be affected by the reduced hours. The company noted that it plans to hire some more full-time hourly workers in 2014 — positions that will include health-care benefits — though it did not provide specific numbers.
A company spokesman would not comment beyond the statement.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-seaworld-part-time-workers-hours-20130909,0,6129525.story
Strange how no one saw the train wreck coming.
SeaWorld confirmed the move Monday in a brief written statement to the Orlando Sentinel. The company operates 11 theme parks across the United States and has about 22,000 employees — nearly 18,000 of whom are part-time or seasonal workers. It has more than 4,000 part-time and seasonal workers in Central Florida.
Under a new corporate policy, SeaWorld will schedule part-time workers for no more than 28 hours a week, down from a previous limit of 32 hours a week. The new cap is expected to go into effect by November.
With the reduced hours, those employees would not be classified as full-time workers under the Affordable Care Act, the health-care overhaul championed by President Barack Obama and signed into law in 2010.
A central provision of that sweeping legislation will require large employers to offer comprehensive and affordable health insurance to all employees who work an average of at least 30 hours a week. The requirement, aggressively opposed by business-lobbying groups, was supposed to take effect this year but has been delayed until 2015.
In its written statement, SeaWorld said the change "is intended to bring consistency to the part-time designation across the SeaWorld Parks system." It would not say whether the federal health-care law was a factor.
SeaWorld also would not say how many of its part-time employees would be affected by the reduced hours. The company noted that it plans to hire some more full-time hourly workers in 2014 — positions that will include health-care benefits — though it did not provide specific numbers.
A company spokesman would not comment beyond the statement.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-seaworld-part-time-workers-hours-20130909,0,6129525.story
Strange how no one saw the train wreck coming.