The University of Colorado at Boulder is the latest college to cut struggling students’ work hours in response to Obamacare, The Washington Times reports.
The college is capping student work hours at 25 hours per week in order to avoid the health-care law’s employer mandate, which would force the university to provide health insurance to students that reach 30 hours or more every week, or pay significant fines.
“After the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), the campus took the opportunity to examine the number of hours student employees were working per week and has established a policy which sets the maximum number of hours a student employee can work during a bi-weekly pay period,” the university posted on its website.
A spokesman for the university told The Washington Times that the 10 percent of student works will have their hours cut as a result. He said that Obamacare was “a catalyst to look our student employment data, but not the sole reason we’re making this move,” as the university wants to keep students focused on classes instead of working.
Students aren’t the only ones hurt by Obamacare-sparked cuts, however. Other university employees with variable hours, including adjunct professors and teaching assistants, have had their hours cut so avoid hefty employer mandate penalties as well. (RELATED: Here’s How Obamacare Makes Life Hell For College Profs)
According to Investor’s Business Daily, over 100 schools have cut their students’ work hours in order to avoid Obamacare’s low classification for full-time work. Another 350 employers have also restricted work hours. (RELATED: Curse of Obamacare Now Curses Cursed Chicago Cubs [VIDEO])
Nonpartisan experts have repeatedly confirmed the health-care law’s dampening effect on employment — often for workers who are already struggling to make ends meet by working as many hours as possible.
Obamacare will reduce the hours Americans work in total by the equivalent of 2 million full-time jobs through 2017, the Congressional Budget Office reported earlier this year. And a series of surveys by several Federal Reserve banks found that the Affordable Care Act is boosting part-time employment at the expense of full-time jobs. (RELATED: Philly Fed: Obamacare’s Increasing Part-Time Work)