Bill to introduce paid sick leave is timely, say advocates

Albuquerque resident Iman Andrade got worried when the pandemic began in mid-March. She delivered pizzas for a living earlier this year and the staff making and delivering the pizzas make minimum wage. They came in sick because they had to, she said. “My experience as a worker, as a driver, you don’t get paid enough […]

Bill to introduce paid sick leave is timely, say advocates

Albuquerque resident Iman Andrade got worried when the pandemic began in mid-March.

She delivered pizzas for a living earlier this year and the staff making and delivering the pizzas make minimum wage. They came in sick because they had to, she said.

“My experience as a worker, as a driver, you don’t get paid enough to get to call into work sick. In the middle of the pandemic, it’s dangerous. The virus is in the air for hours and anybody could be sick with it,” she said.

Because of that, Andrade quit the pizza delivery business and found another job. She is now involved with OLÉ, a New Mexico nonprofit that advocates for family policies, as a volunteer because she wants to speak out about her experience.

The U.S. is one of the only developed countries in the world that lacks a national policy for paid sick leave, Miles Tokunow, an OLÉ community organizer, said.

The paid sick leave bill would mandate that all companies, regardless of size, provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. The minimum amount of time accrued will be 56 hours in a year and the time can be rolled over. Companies that have more generous time off packages for their employees will not be affected by the bill.

The bill, if made into law, will apply to every employee who has less than 56 hours a year for time off in the event of illness, regardless of whether that employee is management or part-time.

Rep. Angelica Rubio, D-Las Cruces, is sponsoring the bill. She said it has been many years in the making.

“COVID-19 has unveiled to us so many inequities,” Rubio said. “For so many workers going to work potentially sick, they’d rather risk being sick and exposing others so they don’t lose income. We should be having this conversation. What values are we representing when we’re allowing workers to operate in these conditions?”

Tukonow also said the pandemic has emphasized the need for such a bill.

“Paid sick leave is about the health of our community,” Tokunow said. “And during this pandemic, we can go so far as to say that paid sick leave saves lives.”

Andrade agrees. She said that during her time delivering pizzas, she saw a manager come to work sick and throw up in a back room.

“I’ve seen people come in with a fever and look like crap,” Andrade said. “People would recover faster and be more productive if they went home.”

There have been efforts to expand employees’ ability to take time off in the past but all have some restrictions or conditions.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham established, by executive order, that state employees can have up to 12 weeks off to care for a new child at the beginning of 2020.

Related: Guv gives state employees paid family leave, some hope to take it further

The Federal Employee Paid Leave Act (FEPLA) went into effect October 1. It allows federal employees up to 12 weeks of paid time off for a new child.

The U.S. Department of Labor allows workers to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave if they work for an employer with more than 50 employees. But experts have said that many can’t afford to do that and many New Mexico businesses have fewer than 50 employees.

Legislators tried to pass a similar bill, which would have created a state fund to enable workers to take time off for paid family medical leave, in the 2020 Legislature. But HB 16, sponsored by Democrat state Rep. Christine Chandler, of Las Alamos, didn’t make it out of committee.

Related: As coronavirus spreads, advocates say it shows why paid sick leave is needed

Tokunow said 51 percent of workers in the state lack access to any form of leave, whether sick leave or Paid Time Off (PTO).

“We know of folks who have not gotten tested for COVID-19 because they can’t take time off,” he said.

He also said the staff at OLÉ, which is involved in grassroots community organizing, has talked to residents who can’t take time off while waiting on the results of a COVID-19 test.

“They don’t have the luxury of being able to do that,” Tokunow said.

Lujan Grisham has said during her regular COVID-19 press conferences that one of the ways in which community spread of the virus is happening is because people go into work sick and they go into work after getting tested.

Related: Governor: New Mexico in ‘extreme crisis’ with COVID-19

A study conducted by the University of New Mexico Business and Economic Research in 2018 said that in the city of Albuquerque, 57 percent of businesses in the city opposed a mandated paid sick leave, believing that it would be too costly for the business.

But the study found that the administrative cost would be $339 per year for a business with a single employee; $297 per employee per year for a business with five workers and $245 per employee per year for a business with 10 workers.

“We think that is doable,” Tokunow said.

Another study, published by a medical journal called Health Affairs, looked at the number of COVID-19 cases in the spring. The federal government allowed employees to take two weeks off through the CARES Act if sick and the study found that there were fewer than 419 cases per day where workers were able to tap into the federal sick leave.

Once the pandemic is over, Rubio said such a law, if the bill is passed, will be important for both businesses and workers.

“This is such an added value for workers and businesses. They get to sustain their loyal workers and continue building a business around a community that is fruitful and thriving and it benefits the overall working culture,” she said.

Andrade sees the bill as common sense.

“I think no one should have to go into work sick to make a pizza or to make coffee. It’s ridiculous,” Andrade said.

We're ad free

That means that we rely on support from readers like you. Help us keep reporting on the most important New Mexico Stories by donating today.

Related

Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List, a nonprofit that supports women candidates and reproductive rights, endorsed seven incumbents facing general election opponents in New Mexico legislative elections. All…
Equality New Mexico endorses 15 legislative candidates

Equality New Mexico endorses 15 legislative candidates

A New Mexico-based LGBTQ rights organization endorsed 15 candidates for state House and Senate seats for the 2024 elections.  Marshall Martinez, executive director of…
Lujan Grisham pocket vetoes two bills

Lujan Grisham pocket vetoes two bills

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham pocket vetoed two bills the legislature passed this legislative session: one changing the Cybersecurity Act and the other concerning law…
BLM announces final methane waste rule

BLM announces final methane waste rule

The federal Bureau of Land Management announced its final methane waste rule on Wednesday. These new regulations clamp down on the practice of venting…
What consumers, farmers should know about the flu impacting dairy cows

What consumers, farmers should know about the flu impacting dairy cows

Migrating birds appear to have caused a virus in dairy cattle that is causing reduced milk production. So far, the disease, which initially started…
Republicans seek to limit national monument designations

Republicans seek to limit national monument designations

Republican-backed legislation in the U.S. Congress would make it harder for the government to designate new national monuments. The proposed Congressional Oversight of the…
Amid new graduation requirements, what do high schoolers want to learn?

Amid new graduation requirements, what do high schoolers want to learn?

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican The main things that bring Brayan Chavez to school every day: Seeing, talking to and engaging with…
Special ed teachers hope lawmakers OK pay raises, admin changes

Special ed teachers hope lawmakers OK pay raises, admin changes

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican Brittany Behenna Griffith has a laundry list of adjectives to describe the ideal special education teacher:…
Lawmakers must find consensus on competing education spending plans

Lawmakers must find consensus on competing education spending plans

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican A challenging task awaits New Mexico lawmakers in the next 30 days: Reconciling three very different…
Health workers fear it’s profits before protection as CDC revisits airborne transmission

Health workers fear it’s profits before protection as CDC revisits airborne transmission

Amy Maxmen, KFF Health News Four years after hospitals in New York City overflowed with covid-19 patients, emergency physician Sonya Stokes remains shaken by…
Lujan Grisham, Biden admin announce $10 million in federal funds for tribes, pueblos

Lujan Grisham, Biden admin announce $10 million in federal funds for tribes, pueblos

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Friday $10 million in funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act was awarded to six tribal nations and…
Proposal to curb executive powers moves to House Judiciary

Proposal to curb executive powers moves to House Judiciary

The House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee discussed a potential constitutional amendment that seeks to limit the governor’s executive powers. The committee approved…
Senators introduce legislation to aid abortion providers

Senators introduce legislation to aid abortion providers

Sen. Martin Heinrih and other Senate colleagues introduced abortion rights legislation into the U.S. Senate on Thursday. The Abortion Care Capacity Enhancement and Support…
U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

The U.S. Supreme Court heard the case about the regulations around mifepristone, one of a two-step regime for abortion medication, on Tuesday. FDA v.…
At stake in mifepristone case: Abortion, FDA’s authority, and return to 1873 obscenity law

At stake in mifepristone case: Abortion, FDA’s authority, and return to 1873 obscenity law

Lawyers from the conservative Christian group that won the case to overturn Roe v. Wade are returning to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in pursuit…
Senators introduce legislation to aid abortion providers

Senators introduce legislation to aid abortion providers

Sen. Martin Heinrih and other Senate colleagues introduced abortion rights legislation into the U.S. Senate on Thursday. The Abortion Care Capacity Enhancement and Support…
New Mexico Medicaid to cover cost of over-the-counter oral contraception

New Mexico Medicaid to cover cost of over-the-counter oral contraception

New Mexico Medicaid announced on Wednesday that it will cover the cost of Opill, the first oral contraception approved for over-the-counter use. It is…
U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

The U.S. Supreme Court heard the case about the regulations around mifepristone, one of a two-step regime for abortion medication, on Tuesday. FDA v.…
San Juan County, Navajo Nation settle redistricting case

San Juan County, Navajo Nation settle redistricting case

The Navajo Nation and San Juan County reached an agreement Monday about commission districts after the tribe alleged that its members were not adequately…
MIT ranks NM elections most well-run in the U.S.

MIT ranks NM elections most well-run in the U.S.

New Mexico’s 2022 election was ranked most well-run in the country by Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Election Data and Science Lab’s Elections Performance Index.…
Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List, a nonprofit that supports women candidates and reproductive rights, endorsed seven incumbents facing general election opponents in New Mexico legislative elections. All…
Ex-GOP candidate allegedly hired people to kill witnesses in shootings of homes of Democratix politicians

Ex-GOP candidate allegedly hired people to kill witnesses in shootings of homes of Democratix politicians

Republican failed state house candidate Solomon Peña is facing more federal charges, this time on a murder-for-hire scheme.  Peña allegedly tried to hire two…
BLM announces final methane waste rule

BLM announces final methane waste rule

The federal Bureau of Land Management announced its final methane waste rule on Wednesday. These new regulations clamp down on the practice of venting…
U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

The U.S. Supreme Court heard the case about the regulations around mifepristone, one of a two-step regime for abortion medication, on Tuesday. FDA v.…

GET INVOLVED

© 2023 New Mexico Political Report