Shared from the 11/29/2017 Austin American Statesman eEdition

WORKPLACE

Legislation would create national policy for paid time off

American workers have some unlikely allies in the fight for paid sick days. U.S. Rep. Mimi Walters, R-Calif., has sponsored a bill that would encourage companies to provide 14 to 20 days of paid time off, and big business loves it.

Currently in committee, the bill would also encourage companies to allow for flexible work arrangements such as job sharing or working remotely. On average, companies offer 10 days of vacation and 10 days of sick leave per year; the new legislation would lump all days off into one category, which would include sick time, vacation and holidays.

The measure would create a national paid-time off policy for sick days and other personal needs, and businesses that comply would be exempt from tougher state and municipal rules. There are at least 40 local laws designed to protect workers from being fired or disciplined for trying to follow doctor’s orders. About one-third of U.S. workers get paid sick days.

“The problem really is the maze of state and local laws out there,” said Mark Wilson, chief economist at the HR Policy Association, the public-policy advocacy group for human resources executives at large U.S. companies, and a supporter of the bill. “The laws are becoming more and more difficult for large employers to comply with on a cost-effective basis.”

San Francisco passed the first local paid sick day law in 2006. Connecticut passed the first state law in 2011. California and six other states have followed, with Rhode Island adding a law this year. New Jersey alone has 13 local rules.

Most of the local laws give employees the right to request sick days without notice, and employers can almost never deny them. The new federal legislation would allow managers to reject workers’ requests for time off.

Opponents say weakening that protection is “dangerous and deceptive,” said Ellen Bravo, director of the Family Values @ Work consortium, a network of state coalitions advocating for paid sick days and family leave for all workers.

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