Jake Blumgart writeson Talking Union
You wake up with a throbbing headache, achy muscles, and a hacking cough. Do you miserably trudge into work or call in sick? Will the call depend on the health of your body or your wallet?
For almost half of Pennsylvania’s workforce, the answer will come down to money. Neither Pennsylvania, nor any other state, requires employers to offer earned sick leave. True, 54 percent of the state’s private-sector workers are offered sick-leave pay, as are 56 percent of workers in Philadelphia. But those who enjoy such benefits tend to have higher incomes, which means, perversely, that if you can swallow an unpaid sick day, you don’t have to. The other half of the workforce is on its own.
Thankfully, regional politicians are responding to the squeeze on working families. Bills to require paid sick leave have been introduced in Philadelphia by Councilman Darrell L. Clarke and in Harrisburg by State Rep. Marc Gergely (D., Allegheny).
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