Paid sick leave bill passes major hurdle
City Council next week is set to approve bill that would give city workers up to five paid sick days per year.
A REQUIREMENT that Philadelphia employers provide their workers with paid sick leave moved a step closer to becoming law yesterday after a City Council committee approved a bill in support of the mandate.
Mayor Nutter, who vetoed two prior bills, sent his support via chief of staff Everett Gillison, who testified that the administration was pleased with amendments to the bill.
"It's been a long process, but we believe that this is a very good bill and it balances all of the various interests. But more importantly, it provides workers with some modicum of security," Gillison said after testifying before the Committee on Public Health and Human Services.
The bill will get a first reading at Council's meeting tomorrow and is expected to be approved by Council on Feb. 12. It would require all employers with 10 or more workers to provide them with one hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours worked - up to a maximum of 40 hours or five days a year.
Nutter initially wanted the bill to pertain to businesses with 15 or more employees.
"I think it's only fair that in Philadelphia in 2015 workers have the right to earn at least five paid sick days a year," said Councilman William Greenlee, the bill's sponsor, who added that he believes the measure will pass, 14-2.
Those speaking in favor of the bill included representatives from the Women's Law Project, Family Values @ Work, the Health Federation of Philadelphia and Jason McCarthey, a city restaurant worker for 23 years.
"I can't imagine any rational person being comfortable knowing that their food and drinks were being prepared and served by someone sick or contagious," he testified.
"But restaurant workers can never consider a sore throat, the sniffles, the flu or a stomach ailment a reason to call in sick. We don't get paid if we call in sick, so we go to work."
Employees of the city and state government already have paid sick-leave benefits.
Not everyone was pleased with the bill. The committee heard objections from representatives of hotel, restaurant and business associations who complained that such a law would result in higher costs, diminished services and fewer customers.
"When the city of Philadelphia imposes mandates on businesses here that other neighboring jurisdictions do not impose, it puts city businesses at a competitive disadvantage," said Joe Grace, director of public policy for the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.
"This bill will not allow employers to grow," said a fired-up Al Taubenberger, president of the Greater Northeast Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, who sparred with Council members over the merits of the bill.
Although workers in 17 cities and three states now benefit from paid-sick-leave laws, Greenlee said, in Philadelphia between 180,000 and 200,000 people work without that benefit.