Jul 22 2008
Why Businesses Across America Aren’t Cutting Jobs: Paid Sick Leave
Despite what you may hear on the radio, all the corporations cutting jobs across the Country has nothing to do with giving mandatory sick leave to employees.
Wachovia is the latest company that will cut nearly 6,400 jobs. I doubt it had anything to do with the threat of mandatory sick leave in their community. Same with Miller/Coors. Same with Harley Davidson. Same with Midwest Airlines.
If your businesses viability is threatened by giving an employee an hour a of sick leave for every four days they have worked, then there might be bigger issues your company is facing than the latest bogeyman from the right-wing faux rage machine.
Dan,
Has anyone discussed the issue of mandated paid sick leave with small businessmen/women in Milwaukee? Has their input been sought? Have any economists (say from Marquette or UWM) ventured an opinion?
One of the perks of being a politcian is that you can force other people to pay for benefits you manddate.
This wasn’t proposed or “mandated” or “forced” by “politicians” Smitty. Over 40,000 people put their signatures down to force a vote on this issue.
I don’t know how you can argue with a large number of concerned citizens organizing and making their voices heard…
How on earth do you write what you did about economic troubles and then come to the conclusion that now is a good time to foist an expensive mandate on businesses?
“Hey, I have a bad back! Now is the perfect time to move that refrigerator all by myself!”
This could, however, be great for the revitalization of North Ave. on the east side of ‘Tosa, so I say bring it on.
You know, how many of these “real world” types fail to weight the nonsense of people dragging their ill asses to work because they can’t afford to take the time off. Now that’s productivity.
From what I understand, one local Krautlich company used to make attendance mandatory for the first six months of someone’s employment.
The scene during flu seasons were these poor wretches falling asleep at their desks, and no doubt spreading the malady throughout the office.
But of course the “up with people” crowd thinks everybody uses sick time to rip off their employers.
Dan,
I’m not impressed by 40,000 signatures on this petition any more than I’d be impressed by 40,000 signatures on a petition that demands the teaching of intelligent design in public schools. So long as it makes them feel good and entails no personal effort or sacrifice, people will sign almost anything, including some things that are nonsense.
Keith,
Where I worked (I’m now retired), my employer provided fairly generous sick leave benefits. Some of my co-workers would call in sick as soon they accumulated 8 hours of sick leave (it was jokingly called a “mental health day”). Of course, others never took sick leave while most used them as needed.