FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JANUARY 17, 2014

CONTACTS: See below  

NEW YORK – Today, Mayor Bill de Blasio and newly elevated City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito jointly announced their intention to expand the Earned Sick Time law passed last year with support from the NY Paid Sick Days Coalition.  

Specifically, their proposal will close the following loopholes in the Earned Sick Time Act:

• Employers with 5-14 workers must now provide paid sick days to their workers.  
• Employers with 15-19 workers must provide paid sick days immediately rather than waiting until 2015.  
• Workers may now use their earned sick time to care for a sibling, grandchild or grandparent.  
• Certain manufacturing employees previously left out will now be covered by the law.  
• City agencies will now be able to proactively enforce the law rather than relying solely on worker complaints.    

The NY Paid Sick Days coalition includes over ninety organizational members, representing labor unions, public health organizations, educators and children’s advocates, women’s groups, economic justice groups, civil rights leaders, faith leaders, business owners and associations, research organizations, senior advocates, and immigrants’ rights groups.  

QUOTES FROM COALITION MEMBERS

Center for Popular Democracy:

The following quote can be attributed to Amy Carroll, deputy director of the Center for Popular Democracy:  

“We applaud Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito for championing and expanding the Earned Sick Time Act. It signals a new day for New York workers and their families that their needs will come first in this administration. We look forward to working with the administration and the council to create policy that will close the income gap and create a more affordable, inclusive city for everyone.” 32BJ SEIU:

The following quote can be attributed to Hector Figueroa, president of 32BJ Service Employees International Union:  

“We applaud Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito for making good on their campaign promises to expand the Paid Sick Act. Although our members can afford to get sick, many of their family members and their neighbors have been forced to choose between their health and their livelihoods. This bill is an important first step in the fight for real income equality in this city and we look forward to working with the administration to make sure this bill and others aimed at improving the quality of life for New York’s working families become law.”   

A Better Balance:

The following quote can be attributed to Sherry Leiwant, co-president of A Better Balance:

“A Better Balance is thrilled that the Mayor is expanding the Earned Sick Time Act we helped negotiate last year to provide paid sick days to so many of the workers excluded under that law.  Thank you to Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito for recognizing that  New Yorkers should not be forced to choose between their jobs and their own or their family's health."

Community Service Society:

The following quote can be attributed to David R. Jones, president and CEO of the Community Service Society:  

"Amending the paid sick leave law to cover more of New York City's smaller businesses is critical because employees of these businesses are the ones who most often now lack access to even one paid sick day. Our latest Unheard Third data shows that the original law effectively leaves out more than a third of the workers now without a single paid sick day -- and just gives them job protection in the form of unpaid leave. CSS applauds the mayor and speaker for their efforts to create a more stable and healthier workforce while ensuring that more low-wage workers receive a basic labor standard that most higher-income earners take for granted."  

Make the Road New York:

Leonardo Fernando, member of Make the Road New York, is an immigrant worker originally from Mexico. He works at a car wash in Queens and he said: "I have lived and worked in this country for nine years, and I've never had paid sick days. The business where I work now, Fresh Pond Car Wash, would be covered under this new paid sick days law because it has thirteen employees. We work long shifts, in the heat and the cold, and we use hazardous chemicals. But I never take a day off, even when I'm sick, because I have four children to support and I can't afford to miss a day's pay or risk losing my job. I've gone to work with a fever and with the flu, and I'm so happy that I'll be able to take the day off when I'm too sick to work. I would like to thank Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Council for expanding the paid sick days law and making this one of the new administration's first priorities."  

New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO:

The following quote is attributable to Vincent Alvarez, President of the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO: "A healthy workforce is a more dedicated and focused workforce. I applaud Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Vivierito for taking this step in the right direction toward expanding the historic Earned Sick Time law that was passed last year, and making it a real priority to improve conditions for hundreds of thousands of our city's workers. The New York City labor movement is committed to continuing to work with the Mayor and the Speaker to ensure that our city's workers are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. "  

New York Paid Leave Coalition:

The following quote can be attributed to Martha Baker, New York Paid Leave Coalition:  

“The NYC Paid Sick Days Coalition applauds Mayor de Blasio for proposing amendments to the recently passed Earned Sick Time Act that will provide paid sick days on April 1, 2014 to hundreds of thousands of workers not covered by the original bill.  We are delighted that the bill has been expanded and that the Mayor recognizes how important it is that New York City workers have access to paid sick days.”  

Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York:

The following quote can be attributed to Daisy Chung, executive director of the Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York:  

"We are pleased that Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito are moving quickly to give more workers the right to paid sick days. With these changes, many restaurant workers who work in the city's smaller restaurants will now have the right to paid sick days. We look forward to working with the Mayor and Speaker to strengthen the Earned Sick Time Act even further so it can be used as a model for the rest of the country."  

Working Families Party:

The following quote can be attributed to Dan Cantor, executive director of the Working Families Party:  

"This is the first sign of what the new administration could mean for New York. Mayor de Blasio has done what every sensible New Yorker knows he should, and he didn't waste any time. The expansion of paid sick days delivers on a basic tenet of fairness -- that no one should face a choice between their families, their jobs, or their health."  

CONTACTS:

Meredith Kolodner, 32BJ SEIU: 917-881-3896

Sherry Leiwant, A Better Balance, 917-535-0075

TJ Helmstetter, Center for Popular Democracy: 973-464-9224

Jeff Maclin, Community Service Society: 212-614-5538

Hilary Klein, Make the Road New York: 347-423-8277

Cara Noel, NY Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO: 212.604.9552

Martha Baker, NY Paid Leave Coalition: 917-992-5300

Rahul Saksena, Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York: 203-561-2959

Khan Shoieb, Working Families Party: 347-596-6389