The Fight for Paid Sick Leave Moves South
“Today, 40 million American workers aren’t paid for the time they take off for health reasons. The U.S. is one of a few countries worldwide that have no national paid sick leave policy in place, besides an Obama-era executive order granting it to federal employees. To fill these federal gaps, cities have begun implementing local measures, driven first by San Francisco in 2006, and since seeping into places like D.C., New York City, and Seattle. It’s been less successful in others: After Milwaukee passed its own city-level law in 2008, the Governor of Wisconsin passed a state law prohibiting mandated paid sick leave. And Austin’s law could still face a similar fate.”