Opposing Sides Plead Cases On 'Sick Time' Bill
With a possible ballot question next fall as leverage, supporters of a bill that would require employers to offer workers earned sick-time benefits pressed their case before a legislative committee Tuesday, while business groups urged lawmakers to resist saddling employers with another costly mandate.
Treasurer Steven Grossman, a Democratic candidate for governor, led off the hearing Tuesday that featured a battery of support for the measure, casting the issue as one about economic justice and public health. Business advocates, however, worried about the impact on jobs amid a sputtering economic recovery, and said employers are better left with the flexibility to determine the types of benefits offered to employees.
“I hope the employers of the commonwealth will see in this an investment in the human capital that ultimately is responsible for the success of any business,” Grossman told the committee, telling the story of Jimmy Lynch, and employee at Grossman Marketing, who came to Grossman in 2005 after being diagnosed with throat cancer.
Grossman covered the employee’s salary for six months while he underwent treatment for cancer, and Lynch has now been with the company for more than 35 years. Though he said he’s not suggesting every business provide six months of paid leave, he called the bill before the Legislature a “measured” and “carefully crafted” approach.
Sen. Daniel Wolf, another potential candidate for governor, co-chaired the hearing before the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development with Rep. Thomas Conroy, a Wayland Democrat. Wolf is a lead sponsor of the Senate legislation, and Rep. Kay Khan, D-Newton, has taken the lead on the issue in the House.
While lawmakers heard testimony, members of the Raise Up Massachusetts coalition were gathering signatures at polling places in Boston for a ballot petition in 2014, according to organizers.
The bills would require companies with 10 or more employees to offer one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to 56 hours. The benefits would be limited to 40 hours in companies with six to 10 workers, and small companies would only be required to offer unpaid leave benefits.
The bill has been revised from versions offered in past years to tier the requirements on businesses and exempt seasonal employers as a response to concerns from the business community, proponents said.
Bill Vernon, state director for the National Federation of Independent Business, said even the rewritten bill could jeopardize as many as 12,000 jobs in Massachusetts and should be removed from the agenda if Beacon Hill leaders are serious about job creation.
Supporters say the bill’s passage would help more than one million workers in Massachusetts who lack benefits available to other workers and face the risk of being fired if they become sick or stay home to care for a sick family member. Some also pointed out that those who lack paid sick time are often those on the lowest end of the income ladder.
AFL-CIO of Massachusetts President Steve Tolman said 145 countries around the world have adopted similar worker protections, and the United States is the only industrialized country without guaranteed paid sick leave.
Bob Luz, president of the Southborough-based Massachusetts Restaurant Association, said restaurants are still vulnerable in the post-recession economy given their small profit margins and high operating costs. With an employee-focused business model of mostly part-time employees, Luz said allowing workers to take sick time in hour increments could disrupt service.
“If a restaurant is understaffed the service level is slowed and the customer experience is compromised, putting in jeopardy that customer returning,” Luz said. He continued, “Employers should be given the flexibility they need to determine their own sick leave policies, as most establishments already provide some form of paid time off for full-time employees.”
Luz said restaurants allow workers to swap shifts with colleagues if they are sick, and sick workers are sent home if they can’t find a replacement or be given a job that doesn’t involve handling food.
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