Workers condemn coronavirus relief bill's loophole for big companies
As the coronavirus outbreak highlights the need for social distancing, policymakers and public health experts want to make sure that sick workers can stay home without fear of going broke.
To that end, the Senate is set to take up on Monday a coronavirus relief bill, passed by the House and backed by President Donald Trump, that could allay the fears of workers and the public alike, requiring businesses to provide employees with paid sick and medical leave.
But the law does not apply to companies with 500 or more employees, meaning about 59 million people who work for such businesses will not receive its protections.
Workers at major corporations and top union officials said they support many of the emergency relief measures in the bill but condemned what they consider a carve-out for big corporations with outsize influence in Washington D.C — one that undermines a measure intended not only to protect employees but the public endangered by sick people forced to go to work.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/workers-condemn-sick-leave-loophole-in-coronavirus-bill-194622494.html