US: Democrats want Mnuchin to explain why bailed-out airlines are cutting workers’ hours

House Democrats want Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to explain why airlines are getting away with cutting workers’ hours after they received portions of $25b in government coronavirus relief funds aimed at maintaining worker payroll. The lawmakers also want Mnuchin to explain whether he told the airlines they were permitted to cut the hours. Airlines, including Delta, JetBlue and United, have announced or already cut the schedules of their hourly workers to reduce costs after air travel demand fell to the lowest in decades. That’s despite having accepted government aid as part of the CARES Act, on the condition they withhold from laying off or cutting worker pay rates through Sept. 30. “United, Delta, and JetBlue airlines have all unilaterally cut workers hours – in some cases significantly decreasing these employees’ pay and benefits,” Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Jesus Garcia of Illinois, and Katie Porter of California, wrote in a letter to Treasury that they plan on delivering later Tuesday. “The creative position held by these airlines is that an hours cut is somehow unrelated to compensation, which is protected under the CARES Act. The hour cuts imposed by these carriers have made some workers eligible for unemployment assistance – a circumstance the legislation was explicitly designed to prevent. These carriers are very clearly out of compliance with the letter and spirit of the law.” The House lawmakers in their letter Tuesday pushed Mnuchin to release guidelines clarifying that reducing hours would be in violation of the CARES Act. <br/>