Congressman Dan Goldman Fights to Establish National Paid Sick Leave
‘Healthy Families Act’ to Ensure Workers Can Keep Families, Community, and Economy Healthy
Over 32 Million People in United States Lack Paid Sick Leave
New York, NY – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) joined Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) in introducing the Healthy Families Act to establish a federal paid sick days policy. Currently in the United States, federal law does not guarantee workers a single paid sick day, and many are not even entitled under law to unpaid time. The Healthy Families Act would allow workers to earn up to 7 job-protected paid sick days per year, establishes a simple method for calculating accrued sick time, and allows employers to utilize existing policies on paid sick leave as long as they meet the minimum number of days allowed.
“No worker should ever have to choose between their ability to put food on the table and taking care of their health,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “It is imperative that we continue to learn from the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic and finally establish national paid sick leave policies. For far too long workers, especially women or workers of color, have faced this impossible choice. The Healthy Families Act will ensure that families can pay their bills and stay healthy while creating safer, healthier workplaces, communities, and a more resilient economy.”
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, almost one in four workers—23 percent—do not have a single paid sick day. This affects low wage workers the most, as workers in the lowest ten percent of earners are half as likely to have paid sick time. Part-time workers (51 percent) are also much less likely to have paid sick time than full-time workers (86 percent). The lack of paid sick leave also disproportionately impacts women and people of color, often contributing to these individuals leaving the workforce.
Only 14 states and Washington D.C. have implemented state-level paid leave protections.
Workers are much more likely to go to work sick when they do not have access to paid sick leave, which increases rates of transmission of illness and getting other workers sick.
Recent studies show that requiring employers to provide paid sick days reduces the spread of flu-like illnesses and reduces emergency room visits by 1.3 million annually, saving $1.1 billion a year. Another study showed that the emergency paid leave provision passed in 2020 helped slow the spread of COVID-19 by roughly 15,000 cases per day.
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