CHALLENGE IN CURBING SPREAD OF SWINE FLU: HALF OF WORKFORCE LACKS PAID SICK DAYS

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By Miriam Raftery

April 27, 2009 (Washington D.C.) – At least 50 cases of swine flu have been confirmed in the U.S. with confirmed cases in many other countries today, prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise its pandemic alert level to Phase 4 for the first time ever. Locally, Christian Cornerstone Academy in Mira Mesa has closed after six teachers fell ill following exposure to a student with swine flu.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that those who are sick should stay home from work or school to avoid infecting others. But analyses of Bureau of Labor Statistics and other data conducted by the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) reveal that less than half of workers have paid sick days, and only one-third can use sick days to care for sick children. Workers who lack paid sick time are more likely to go to work with a communicable illness, and parents who cannot stay home with a sick child are more likely to send sick children to school or day care.

Workers who work in direct contact with the public, such as restaurant workers, child care workers, and hotel employees, are among the least likely to have paid sick days. Workers without paid sick days lose wages if they stay home, and some risk losing their jobs. People who go to work or school while sick may infect coworkers, customers, and classmates, resulting in even more infections. With seasonal influenza, this pattern of infection is a serious problem, costing employers and families millions of dollars a year and sometimes causing serious illness or death, especially among infants and the elderly. The deaths among young, healthy individuals in Mexico (identified as a serious cause for concern by the CDC and WHO) suggest that the swine flu has the potential to be much more costly and dangerous than typical seasonal influenza.

The swine flu situation raises the question of the public health costs of failing to provide paid sick days. Despite the public health implications and popular support - four of five Americans think that paid sick days should be a basic labor standard - no national or state laws require that workers have paid sick days.

"Ensuring that all workers have access to a few paid sick days would yield far-reaching benefits to society and--especially during a pandemic--could have enormous preventive health and economic benefits. Many employers say they cannot afford to provide paid sick days, but during a time like this, society can't afford to take risks with the public's health," comments IWPR Vice President and Director of Research Dr. Barbara Gault.

The Healthy Families Act, introduced by Senator Ted Kennedy, would require that paid sick time be provided by employers with fifteen or more employees, is likely to be reintroduced in Congress sometime next month. It would require employers who employ 15 or more employees for each working day during 20 or more workweeks a year to provide a minimum paid sick leave of: (1) seven days annually for those who work at least 30 hours per week; and (2) a prorated annual amount for those who work less than 30 but at least 20 hours a week, or less than 1,500 but at least 1,000 hours per year. It would also allow employees to use such leave to meet their own medical needs or to care for the medical needs of certain family members.

The measure is supported by labor organizations but opposed by some business interests. The National Federation of Independent Businesses has pledged to fight the measure, which it maintains would “ignore the question of whether or not a small employer can afford to keep a position open until an employee returns from leave.” The group further argues that “government-mandated sick leave would be destructive for small business, opening the door for increased litigation and onerous compliance burdens.”

For more information on paid sick days, visit www.iwpr.org. For full text of the bill and information on the Healthy Families Act, visit http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:hr01902:@@@L&summ2=m&.


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