WASHINGTON District of Columbia lawmakers are reportedly scheduled to vote on a measure next Tuesday that would require local restaurateurs and other employers to provide paid sick leave to employees.
Under the current version of the proposal, employers’ obligations would depend on the size of their payrolls. Establishments that employ at least 51 people would be required to provide up to seven days of paid sick leave annually, while places with no more than 10 workers would have to extend three days of paid leave. Part-time workers would get half the time allotted to full-time staffers, according to The Washington Post.
The paid leave would be extended to employees who are ill or who need time to deal with the medical, psychological or legal aftermath of sexual abuse or domestic violence, the Post reported.
An article in the paper said the measure replaces an earlier proposal that would have required companies with as few as six workers to offer 10 days of paid sick leave.
If the initiative is approved, Washington would become the second city in the nation to mandate paid sick leave. A voter-approved measure went into effect in San Francisco in February. That law requires businesses employing at least 11 people to provide nine days of paid leave, and for smaller operations to offer five days.
At least eight states are considering paid sick leave mandates, and bills imposing the benefit nationwide have been introduced in the U.S. Congress.