BILL: Should We Get Gov. Mandated Paid Sick Leave? - Healthy Families - Act H.R.3409

The Bill

H.R.3409 - Healthy Families Act

Bill Details

• Sponsored by Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro (D-Conn.) on May 17, 2023
• Co-sponsored by over 40 lawmakers, including Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)
• House - Education and the Workforce; House Administration; Oversight and Accountability
• House: Not yet voted
• Senate: Not yet voted
• President: Not yet signed

Bill Overview

• Ensures the U.S. joins almost every industrialized nation in guaranteeing paid sick leave to its workers. Currently, 34 million workers lack any paid sick time at all – including 25% of the private sector workforce and 9% of the public sector workforce. 
• Allows workers in businesses with 15 or more employees to earn up to seven job-protected paid sick days each year.
• Provides a simple method for calculating accrued sick time. Workers would earn a minimum of one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to 56 hours per year, unless the employer selects a higher limit.
• Expands eligibility to cover all workers who have earned at least $2,000 in income in the past two years, whether or not they are subject to Social Security taxes. Previously, only workers subject to Social Security taxes would have been eligible for paid leave benefits.

What's in the Bill?

Covers broad health needs

• Allow workers who are victims of domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault to use their paid sick days to recover or seek assistance related to an incident.
• Workers can use the leave to recover from their own illnesses, access preventive care, and provide care to a sick family member.
• Workers can use the paid leave to attend school meetings related to a child’s health condition or disability. 

Addresses gaps in sick leave

• Nearly one in four employed mothers return to work within two weeks of giving birth, and one in five retirees have left the workforce earlier than planned to care for an ill family member.
• Over 2 million women have left the U.S. workforce since the start of the pandemic because they could not balance work and family responsibilities. Employers who provide paid sick leave see 25% less turnover in their workforce. 

Focuses on public health

• Workers without paid sick leave are three times more likely to delay or forgo necessary health care compared to working adults with paid sick days.
• Workers with paid sick leave are 28% less likely to suffer nonfatal occupational injuries.
• Universal paid sick days would result in cost savings of $1.1 billion per year, including $500 million in savings for public health insurance programs like Medicare and Medicaid.

What Supporters Are Saying

• Endorsed by over 120 organizations, including the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, MomsRising, Family Values at Work, Paid Leave For All, and the National Partnership for Women & Families.
• Sanders said:

“It is time to end this absurdity. It is time for the United States to join nearly every other major country in the world and finally guarantee paid sick leave. In the richest country in the history of the world, it is a total disgrace that millions of workers are having to choose between their job and caring for their family."

• Rep. DeLauro said:

“Right now, the United States does not guarantee workers a single paid sick day, and many are not even entitled – under law – to unpaid time. Not even one day. That is shameful."

• Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) said:

“Without universal paid leave, millions of Americans must choose between their livelihood and the health and well-being of themselves and their families. After ten years fighting for paid leave, we are still the only industrialized nation without this essential program."

Tell your reps to support or oppose this bill

-Emma Kansiz

(Photo Credit: Canva)