The House Workforce Protections Subcommittee held a hearing yesterday on the Healthy Families Act. The bill would require businesses with 15 or more employees to give workers seven paid sick days per year, which could be used to recover from illness, care for ill family members or to receive services related to domestic violence.
The bill’s sponsor, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), testified: “It is about keeping our businesses and workers strong-and helping to maintain their edge in a tightening global economy. But, we also know, it is hard to stay ahead when 19 of the 20 most competitive countries in the world guarantee paid sick days-and the United States is the odd one out.”
Representatives from the Business and Professional Women’s Foundation (BPW) and the American Association of University Women (AAUW) also testified in support of the bill. “The lack of paid sick days particularly hurts working women, who still bear a disproportionate responsibility for care of the family,” BPW CEO Deborah Frett.
