10 States ban paid sick leave- Bill Moyers

[Ichingcarpenter]

Ten states — Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Wisconsin — have passed preemption laws that ban all cities and counties from enacting paid sick days bills, according to an analysis from the Economic Policy Institute.


Big business has been helping to fuel this tide of legislation. As the report notes, “In each of the ten states, the bills’ sponsors included members of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). And in each case, the bills were adopted following vigorous advocacy by corporate lobbies such as the Chamber of Commerce, National Federation of Independent Business, and Restaurant Association.”

Yet even though these business opponents claim that paid sick days would create unbearable costs, the evidence from those places that do have paid sick leave shows that they can be beneficial. Business growth and job growth have been strong under Seattle’s law. Job growth has also been strong in San Francisco and its law enjoys strong business support. The policies in Washington, DC and Connecticut have come at little cost for businesses. In fact, expanding DC’s current law would net employers $2 million in savings even with potential costs factored in. On the other hand, the average employer loses $225 per worker each year thanks to lost productivity when they get sick and can’t take paid leave.


http://billmoyers.com/2013/11/07/paid-sick-leave-is-popular-so-corporate-america-is-lobbying-against-democracy/

[annabanana]

1. ALEC is a fascist organization.

ALEC legislation is fascist legislation.

[Prophet 451]

23. Yes, they are

Mussolini, who invented fascism, said it "should more properly be called corporatism, as it is the union of state and corporate power". ALEC is literally Fascist.

[HereSince1628]

29. Fascism requires government, ALEC seems to have gone wholly anti-establishment

It's an anything goes anarchy of, for, and by the rich.

[annabanana]

37. Oh, They've got government alright.

They write the legislation and have purchased enough of the legislators to pass it.

[HereSince1628]

40. Careful, don't confuse practices of the transition with the final desired goal.

[malaise]

2. Good fugging grief

I can't believe this.

[RKP5637]

4. It's mind boggling, it is simply mind boggling. One WTF after another. n/t

[hfojvt]

60. neither can I, because I live in Kansas

I can assure you, paid sick leave is legal. According to my paycheck of 10-18-2013, I have 432.33 hours of it.

What the law does, I am sure, is that it prevents a liberal city like Lawrence, or a county like Douglas, from passing an ordinance REQUIRING employers to provide paid sick leave.

Meaning that paid sick leave is NOT in any normal sense of the word "banned" in Kansas.

Lawrence, incidentally, has a "living wage" law. But I wonder if Wal-mart did not get around that law by locating their store just outside the city limits.

I wonder if somebody passed a law banning honest reporting on the internets.

[RKP5637]

3. Yet another WTF! This country needs to clean house of these creatures that promote and

pass cruel and unusual laws ... and those that promote them.

[newfie11]

5. What happened to my country

How did vile evil people gain control.
Never mind I know and if people in this country don't wake the f**k up it's going to get a lot worse.

[Prophet 451]

25. Clinton

Well, not him specifically, but it happened during his reign. Much of teh mainstream Democratic party pretty much gave up on trying to distinguish themselves from Republicans on an economic level.

[Ghost of Tom Joad]

44. Reagan

I would have to say more harm was done by Reagan than any other President ever.

[dchill]

73. So would I...

Been saying it for over 30 years.

[Frustratedlady]

32. Koch money happened!

If they don't like this country enough to support it through industry and good deed, they need to move...preferably to their own island so they leave the rest of us alone. Maybe Mother Nature will make life uncomfortable for them with rising water. It's rising due to their stupid ideas and pollution.

Surely, there is something our government can do about them. If you look back, much of what has happened in the last 10-15 years has been because of their meddling and dirty tricks. They must have a gaggle of lawyers keeping them out of trouble.

[Ichingcarpenter]

6. Fuck 2016 you are getting fucked now

and it will only grow worse in

'THE HERE AND NOW''

[KoKo]

85. +1

[LuvNewcastle]

7. The American Legislative EXCHANGE Council.

They exchange money for legislative support of their agenda.

[Ilsa]

8. But they have a certain amount of PTO?

My spouse has worked for organizations that grant paid time off, vacation plus more for illness. I don't know what we'd do if he was taken ill or hurt badly enough to burn through all of it at once. I guess we'd be on his disability.

[nashville_brook]

67. wage workers like servers at Darden Restaurants, and airline workers, and nursing home assistants

are among the least likely to have access to any sort of PTO or sick time. You're either on the clock or off the clock and if you call in sick (aside from not getting wages for that day) they often just don't put you on the schedule again, or give you unbearable hours "to teach a lesson."

working parents with kids in school have a real hard time with b/c the school doesn't want kids to come in sick, but parents often don't have a choice.

[Shrike47]

9. So they want people to work while sick?

No wonder various viruses spread so easily.

These people are awful.

[randome]

10. It's all about keeping government interference in private enterprise to a minimum.

No, it's not.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]I'm always right. When I'm wrong I admit it.
So then I'm right about being wrong.[/center][/font][hr]

[B Calm]

11. Seeing backwards Indiana on the list

does not surprise me.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

16. I work for the state and have paid sick time in my job

Does this apply to private businesses? I hate living in Indiana sometimes. *ugh*.

[B Calm]

17. I live here just to spite republicans!

[dotymed]

21. I remember when Indiana was a safe, Union state

before (W's budget director) Mitch Daniels bought the governorship.
It is now much closer in it's politics to TN. where I retired....

[pangaia]

42. I hate Indiana also and I live in NY.

I am going to Indianapolis on Fri for a convention.
Every other year there. NO GOOD FREAKIN' SUSHI BARS!
Austin, Louisville, Cincinnati, even Nashville, yes. Indy? No.
What kind of a city that size doesn't even have one good sushi bar?

[Brigid]

45. We like our fish fried.

Along with just about everything else.

ETA: I just did a Google search and found a number of sushi bars. How good they are, though, I don't know, because I don't eat sushi. Try Yelp too.

[pangaia]

79. No good, unless there is a new one this year. :>)

What I didn't say is that I live near Rochester, NY where there USED to be edible sushi. No longer. Worse than Indy.

You know where I had great fried fish?
The Netherlands ! WOW!!

I'll look for a fried fish place this weekend in Indy. Thanks for the heads up.

[Brigid]

81. There are two very nice seafood places downtown.

McCormick & Schmick's and Oceanaire. But they're they're pretty expensive.

[pangaia]

82. Great.

I'll be at a convention downtown and as I remember, McCormick & Schmick's, is nearby.
Thanks...

[Brigid]

83. 110 N. Meridian St.

But it gets $$$$ on prices.

[pangaia]

84. Money is no problem.

if you believe that.....

Can't be as bad as Don Shula's rip off place. :&gt

[Niceguy1]

54. it doesn't affect anybody who has sick leave

it just prevents cities and counties from passing laws that require businesses to offer paid sick leave

[Proud Liberal Dem]

56. It's one thing to refuse to pass a law mandating something

I've always found it particularly digusting and anti-democratic to pass laws prohibiting cities and counties from passing laws, especially since most of the people passing such laws hate the Federal Government passing laws that states and cities have to follow. Of course, such hypocrisy is par for the course for these people but still..............

[Niceguy1]

58. it is kind of sensless

I can see if the state wanted a uniform law, but they don't. It is dumb.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

61. It's just another way for the right to prevent/stop progress

They are champions of "local control" but only when it suits them, not the rest of us. *ugh*

[Brigid]

24. I used to think getting out of Terre Haute would be enough.

I was absolutely miserable there. If it simply dried up and blew away, I swear I'd throw a party. I like Indy, the beneficiary of smart decisions made by mayors like Hudnut and Lugar decades ago; but it is being dragged down by the rest of this screwed-up state. I have been considering moving to Chicago when I finish school. I'd been telling myself that I need to get out of the habit of thinking that leaving is always the solution, but the reality is, this state is hopelessly backward. This is a perfect example.

[tsuki]

12. If you vacation in Florida, don't eat in corporate chain restaurants. I live

here and know better.

[pangaia]

43. Why would anybody eat in a corporate chain restaurant ANYWHERE?

[deminks]

13. This is simply cruel and unusual.

[theHandpuppet]

14. Good Lord... what's happened to Wisconsin?

Used to be a solid, sane, blue state.

[B Calm]

15. Like Indiana, they have a Tea Bag Governor

[cantbeserious]

18. The Oligarchs And Corporations Own And Control The Politicians That Own And Control Us

eom

[Blue_Tires]

50. +1

[Flatulo]

19. I remember reading 'The Good Earth' by Pearl S. Buck. In the story, the Chinese farmer's wife

gives birth and then goes right back to work in the fields.

How is this different?

[JHB]

20. AKA "Sneezing Server and Coughing Cook Laws"

Just to remind everyone of what that means.

Have fun at the diner! Or the supermarket, for that matter. Or on the road, near a feverish driver.

[fasttense]

22. So does that mean every business inside these states have to stop providing paid sick leave????????

I know several corporations that provide paid sick leave and they operate inside these states. Even Wall-Mart gives a kind of strange paid sick leave. So, are these states going to force every corporation, business and federal employee inside their states to STOP providing paid sick leave? How will they enforce it?

[Brigid]

27. If I am understanding this correctly,

Cities and town inside the state will be banned from enacting their own laws requiring companies to provide paid sick leave. Companies can still voluntarily provide it, out of the goodness of their hearts. Yeah, right.

[LisaLynne]

28. Yes, because we have seen that corporations and smaller businesses always ...

do what is best for us all.

[elehhhhna]

38. this leg. prevents the making of any law REQUIRING paid sick time

which is wtf enough - laws to prevent laws to protect workers and consumers. So fuckit, let's lobby for a FED law for pto. That overrides state & local laws. Boom.

This is the first step in conditioning the workers who have PTO to accept its revocation without getting all uppity.

[mwooldri]

26. Ungh :( - and NC's on the list? *grrr*

Change the title and scope of "sick leave". I propose "emergency paid leave", that covers time off from work to cover for an "unplanned personal or family emergency". So, it could cover your paycheck for when you're sick... but it's not sick time now... nope, no sick time offered here... Oh, and introduce a "short term disability" or "salary continuation" plan (at no cost to the employee) that covers your paycheck if you are out of work for over a week. That should cover most eventualities, and would match what a number of companies offer their employees.

Plus "big business" are hypocrites - many still offer "sick leave" (described specifically as such).

Grrr.... if big business knows sick time helps increase productivity, then why force local government to not offer it?

[DirkGently]

30. At this point, it seems like just wanting to hurt people.

... or proving that protecting workers is just unacceptable. In Florida, Disney, Darden, et. al seemed to be just moving Republicans' lips remotely. They had no idea why paid sick leave was such a bad idea; it was just about following orders and proving they could stop it.

[Prophet 451]

48. The latter

The dream of the corporate class is to make the labour so desperate that they'll work for pennies and no benefits and can be hired and fired at any time for any reason. Everything they do is designed to further that agenda. That's why the war on welfare, why they're pushing legislation to get rid of paid sick leave, overtime, etc. If they can make an extra dollar by raping you with a broken bottle, it would be company policy yesterday.

[Ed Suspicious]

31. I wondered aloud which backward states would

do that. I thanked my lucky stars I didn't live in one. Then I read the article. Thanks Walker, Fitzgeralds, and the remaining pukes. You put is on a list with Arizona and fucking Mississippi! God, if you turds secure another term I don't know what to do.

[mcp37]

34. The larger goal

is trying to move every state to a 'right to work' state. Which basically means workers have no rights or protections. I live in one of those listed states but am fortunate enough to work for the state so I have paid sick leave. I think ALEC, business groups and politicians who agree with anti-worker moves like these are the ones who are sick and should leave without pay!

[Prophet 451]

49. That's only the start of it

The dream of the corporate class is to make the labour so desperate that they'll work for pennies and no benefits and can be hired and fired at any time for any reason. Everything they do is designed to further that agenda. That's why the war on welfare, why they're pushing legislation to get rid of paid sick leave, overtime, fighting a minimum wage increase, etc. If they can make an extra dollar by raping you with a broken bottle, it would be company policy yesterday.

[Ash_F]

33. Wisconsin really? /nt

[RoccoR5955]

35. I guess they want EVERYONE sick

What happens when a food service worker comes in sick, and spreads it, not only to her or his co-workers, but to the patrons?
There will be payback for this, when one of those ALEC bass turds gets very sick from a restaurant that they ate at, and finds out that one of his damn laws was responsible.

[Crunchy Frog]

36. A good list of states to avoid eating out in.

[nashville_brook]

68. b/c of lack of sick time Florida tourist attractions are incredible vectors... Disney, SeaWorld...

there's some unionized labor there, but most wage workers are without any sort of sick time. also airlines workers rarely get sick leave -- people who clean planes, do maintenance, serve food and work in shops. i bet it's one of the reasons i always get sick when i travel.

also bothers me that people responsible for airplane maintenance might not be operating at 100%. not thinking straight b/c you have the flu could be bad if your job is to keep planes working.

[DrDan]

39. that subject line really should be fixed

paid sick day bills are banned, not paid sick days

not defending it - but it is different

[DrDan]

41. add Pennsylvania to that list as a potential bill banner

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/10/24/2828431/pennsylvania-paid-sick-days-preemption/

[gopiscrap]

46. that's so fucked up

the folks in these states need to rise up and make it very uncomfortable for business and TPTB!!!!

[lumberjack_jeff]

47. The business community is collectively stupid.

The reason that paid leave and high minimum wages help businesses is because it means more consumers have more money to spend.

Paid leave reduces the supply of labor. Instead of 52 employees, now an employer needs 54 to cover the time off. Further, when employees come in sick, they spread disease and reduce the efficiency of everyone.

[noiretextatique]

51. wow

just is this what they mean by "freedom?" how can any worker, even a teabagger, think this is a good idea?

[Sheepshank]

52. I *think* this is just one more tactic to weaken unions

collective bargaining can and often does require sick leave as a component of the negotiations. I wonder if this nullifies legal contractual agreements that will not be upheld by the state courts if challenged by the corporations who had intered into an agreement with unions to provide sick leave.

Utah (where I live) is not on that list of states that the law redefines how sick leave is banned, yet there are companies here that don't offer sick leave, instead have added # number of day "leave" to be used as necessary for sick, vacation etc

[indepat]

53. Republican statehouses doing what Republicans do best: pissing on their constituents with

cruelty and malevolence.

[former9thward]

55. I live in Arizona

We have paid sick leave. So the OP is wrong. I have lived in Indiana. There was paid sick leave there. The OP is wrong.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

66. More than likely...

You had an employer who offered paid sick time as a benefit. These laws are meant to prevent cities or states from passing laws that REQUIRE employers to offer paid sick time.

[former9thward]

71. What city or state has passed such a law?

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

75. It was moving forward in Milwaukee

I think maybe Seattle has done this?

[former9thward]

78. Thanks.

I googled and found Seattle has a law although non-enforced at this point. Milwaukee passed a law but it was overturned in court.

[nashville_brook]

69. sure your company might have offered it, but what the OP is about is regulating that everyone has it

including people with "crappy" hourly jobs.

[former9thward]

72. Who has ever made that regulation?

[LanternWaste]

76. As per the article... six cities and CT, with fight underway in Newark, Tacoma, MA, NJ & VT

"And as the momentum grows for preemption bills, so too does the push for paid sick days. Six cities and Connecticut have them on the books, and fights are underway in Newark, NJ; Tacoma, WA; Massachusetts; New Jersey; and Vermont..."

[former9thward]

77. Thanks, I've never heard of it.

[Blue Owl]

57. Fuck. Them.

n/t

[gollygee]

59. Wow

I think they can't possibly top the inhuman things they've done so far, but they always surprise me. Workplaces give precious few sick days as it is. And people should be encouraged to stay home when sick for everyone's benefit.

[Martin Eden]

62. That's bad for business.

People who don't have paid sick days come to work sick and infect their coworkers.

[nashville_brook]

70. you'd think that that would be, but there's no line for that on quarterly profit reports

therefore the largest companies using hourly workers are only interested in short-term gains.

[aikoaiko]

63. I don't understand. I work in GA and have sick days.

I know county police accrue sick days, too.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

64. I think this refers to "mandatory" paid sick days...

Some lower-paying jobs (think fast food) operate on the basis of "if you're not here, you don't get paid." Some states and municipalities have passed laws requiring ALL employers to provide paid sick time -- basically requiring all employers to offer this as a benefit.

[aikoaiko]

65. Ah. I see. nt

[Victor_c3]

74. Yup. Republicans obviously have the best interest of their constituents in mind n/t

[avaistheone1]

80. WTF! The corporate Taliban strike again.