Obamacare returns freedom to workers

The “plantation owners” are whining again. They had the labor pool where they wanted it and now Obamacare is messing that up.

Instead of having to work every waking moment, a worker might be able to have a free evening or weekend to enjoy family time or have fun with friends. The so-called “job creators” want workers so desperate for income that they will accept any wages and any number of hours. As pay gets lower in relation to the cost of housing, fuel, food, clothing and health care, a worker has to put in more and more time at work just to cover basic necessities.

In addition, large corporations have been able to hold health care benefits out as commodity workers cannot get by working for small businesses or purchasing it themselves because insurance companies charge smaller groups of people or individuals higher rates to get the same kind of coverage that a large corporation gets at a discount rate. Today this is accepted as just another way the big corporations squelch competition from small businesses and tie employees to their jobs.

Whatever happened to the 40-hour workweek? Or only one parent working while the other cared for the home and children? Conservatives are saying, “With affordable health care, people will not stop working altogether.”

This is wrong. Rather, people will just stop working all the time.

Carolyn Sternowski

Cedar Rapids