Posted on 07/23/2008 6:34:33 AM PDT by Virginia Ridgerunner
Samantha Baskin gets paid to be patient. One of thousands of students across the District who had pay problems in the summer youth jobs program last week, Samantha, 14, said that she doesn't actually do anything at the Washington East of the River Academy.
"We don't do nothing," she said. The director "holds us in a room for hours."
Although she was owed several hundred dollars, Samantha was paid a nickel Friday and was finally paid in full yesterday.
(snip)
At least 200 of the 800 students in the academy indicated by a show of hands that they had not received their proper pay. In interviews, many students echoed Samantha's complaint, saying they were spending their days sitting silently in classrooms.
Dianna Robinson, the summer academy director, said students were stuck in the auditorium for the first two weeks because proper permissions for the site -- the P.R. Harris Elementary School -- had not been secured from the school system. She said programs in the next two weeks had been delayed because she was registering more than 500 students not on the payroll.
(snip)
Robinson said she was excited about the remaining 4 1/2 weeks, now that everyone has been registered. But she did not think the first month had been a waste.
"Some of these 14-year-olds are the only ones earning a salary in a three-generation household," Robinson said. "If that means sitting in a hot auditorium, then I'm okay with that."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
What happened to child labor laws? And these kids aren’t even getting paid?
“Samantha Baskin gets paid to be patient. One of thousands of students across the District who had pay problems in the summer youth jobs program last week, Samantha, 14, said that she doesn’t actually do anything at the Washington East of the River Academy.
“We don’t do nothing,” she said. The director “holds us in a room for hours.” “
Might I suggest that they are in training for a government job?
.....Bob
These kids have been getting screwed every summer since Marion Barry first took office.
Just getting good training for a life-time of waiting for their government checks for doing nothing. By the way, that’s money from the paychecks of real workers that the government confiscates for these pernicious programs.
Sounds to me like they are being fairly compensated for the work they are doing. I don’t see what the complaint is. If they don’t like the job, go look for something better.
“We don’t do nothing,” she said. The director “holds us in a room for hours.” “
Might I suggest that they are in training for a government job?
***************************************************************
Too true! Thanks for my first laugh of the day!
“We don’t do nothing,” she said.
I can see that English had a profound effect on this young lady.
Well there's your problem right there.
And perhaps while they "don't do nothing", they could bring in an English teacher for these 3rd generation do nothings.
What happened to child labor laws?
No labor involved here:
"We don't do nothing," she said. The director "holds us in a room for hours."
As others posters said, it sounds like they are in training to spend the rest of their lives sucking on the federal teat. The Director is showing them the way.
By the end of summer they will be fully qualified to spend the rest of their lives as welfare breeders or in federal government as Affirmative Action place holders.
Sounds like the old Soviet Union. Workers pretend to work and the government pretends to pay them.
Sounds like pretty realistic training to me. I would say they will make fine gubermint employees for life.
When the library ladies complained, the kids called them racists for expecting them to show up at all.
My sister received full pay, although she was never even assigned a job.
I later went on to work at that library during summers and in college.
“...the Washington East of the River Academy..”
...east of the river eh?...that’s a nice way of saying Anacostia....a very dangerous black part of Washington....it’s the 8th Ward...home of Councilman Marion Berry....he keeps in public office because his voters like the way he sasses the man....parts of Washington now look like street scenes straight out of the director’s cut of “Blade Runner”....a sad representation of our nation’s capital.
I am glad she's OK with my tax dollars being wasted that way. I hope Universal Government Health Care works so well (seriously)
You were obviously taught a higher work ethic than most of the others. Good for you, sad for them.
How many are phantom employees? I bet there are a few politicians on the payroll too.
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