From Queens Chronicle: By Lisa Fogarty
Many New Yorkers wouldn’t think of going to work with a contagious virus. But more than one million workers in the city are faced with a difficult choice any time they’re ill: they can fumble through the day, risking the possibility of infecting others or having their condition worsen, or stay home and lose a day’s wages.
The City Council has introduced two sick leave bills within the last two years that would require large and small businesses to offer employees five or nine days of paid sick leave, depending on the size of the company.
Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights), who was a public school teacher for 25 years, said he recalls asking parents of sick students to retrieve their children and being told they couldn’t — they were afraid of getting fired if they took another day off.
“In a depressed economy we have to fight to make sure our workers are paid well and fairly,” Dromm said.
The latest bill is a fair one that has been adjusted to address the concerns of small businesses and ensure they don’t have to shoulder an unfair burden, he said.
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