The Healthy Families Act

October 8, 2008 UPDATE

The Healthy Families Act guarantees fulltime workers seven paid sick days a year and part-time workers a pro-rata amount of paid sick days to recover from their own illness or care for a sick family member. H.R.1542 is sponsored by Rep. Rosa DeLauro and cosponsored by 106 representatives. S.910 is sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy and cosponsored by 25 senators.

Currently, no state or federal law guarantees paid sick days. San Francisco is the only city that guarantees paid sick days for all its workers. State legislatures in Alaska, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington DC, and West Virginia are looking at this issue, and there is movement in Congress to reintroduce this bill in the 111 th Congress.

Background

Nearly half (48%) of private-sector workers do not have a single paid sick day to care for themselves or family members in illness. More than half of the private workforce does not qualify for unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act and a vast majority of all workers have no paid family leave. Only one in four low-wage workers have paid sick days, and they are often women who have jobs requiring frequent contact with the public.

Working persons need time to meet their own healthcare needs and to care for family members, including their children, spouse, parents or other children and adults for whom they are caretakers.

In a large percentage of today’s families, both parents work for pay and the typical couple now works close to 90 hours per week. Providing paid sick days benefits all workers including women and seniors.

Nearly half of working mothers miss work when a child is sick and women are more likely to have low-wage jobs that do not offer paid sick days. Parents are often forced to choose between jobs they need and caring for their families. “Presenteeism”—coming to work when sick—creates a larger productivity drain than either absenteeism or short term disability.

The Healthy Families Act, S. 910 and H. R. 1542, addresses this labor and public health problem by providing seven paid sick days to all employees. Working persons with paid sick leave are more productive and less likely to leave their jobs, which saves businesses money by reducing turnover and illness in the workplace. If workers were provided just seven paid sick days per year, our national economy would save about $8.1 billion a year.

Offering workers the option of taking time off when they or their family members are sick affects profits positively and allows families to fill multiple responsibilities and achieve the basics of a decent life.

Providing employees time off to meet healthcare needs ensures they will be healthier in the long run. Preventive care helps avoid illnesses and injuries and routine medical care helps detect illnesses early and shorten their duration. Children recover faster from illness when they stay home and are cared for by their parents.

This legislation would promote the goal of equal employment opportunity for women and men. This would enhance the economic security of working families and have a positive impact on our society and economy.

Catholic social teachings reflected in the following encyclical and Bishop’s pastoral speak of and promote work as a support to family life:

• 1981, John Paul II, “On Human Labor”: Work makes family life possible, makes possible the achievement of purposes of the family and increase common good of the human family (#10). The Church calls for wages sufficient to support a family, allowances to mothers raising a family, social benefits for worker such as healthcare, decent work environment, pension and, insurance. (#19)
• 1986, U.S. Bishops, “Economic Justice for All”: Promote policies which support and strengthen families. (# 206). Economic arrangements must promote the family (# 346)

We need workplace standards that provide all workers with access to paid sick days, family and medical leave with job protection and wage replacement, control over their own schedule and part-time work with wage, benefits and protections.

We need a law that guarantees a minimum number of paid sick days for those in the labor force. Paid sick leave supports the needs of workers and their families, prioritizing the person over profit while protecting public health and guarding our economy.

NETWORK urges you to act to make this high priority legislation for the 111 th Congress.