This afternoon, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 30, the Save American Workers Act to change the definition of a full-time employee under the health care law to 40 hours a week. The bill was approved by a vote of 252-172.
The Affordable Care Act changed the traditional definition of the American work week from 40 hours to 30 hours when it was passed in 2010. The 30-hour rule was originally set to take effect at the beginning of 2014 but, due to the complexity of the rule and the problems it created, the Obama administration delayed its implementation by a full year. The Save American Workers Act, introduced by Rep. Todd Young (R-IN), standardizes the definition of a full-time employee under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to 40 hours per week, bringing it in line with common labor standards.
The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration, where there has been some Democratic support in the past.