One of The Strongest Paid Sick Leave Policies In The Nation Becomes Law in Montgomery County
Working Families in Montgomery County got a big boost when County Executive Ike Leggett signed a new paid sick leave bill into law earl
ier this month.
Beginning October 2016, almost all employers that operate within the county will be required to provide a minimum of seven days of paid sick leave for their full time workers. Small businesses that have fewer than five workers will be required to offer a total of seven days of sick leave for their employees, four paid and three unpaid.
“Today is a remarkable moment in Montgomery County history and I want to applaud everybody in this room who contributed to that,” United States Secretary of Labor and former Montgomery County Council Member Tom Perez said at the bill signing ceremony. In his speech, Secretary Perez also thanked Montgomery County on behalf of the president.
The bill passed the Montgomery County Council unanimously on June 23rd, after the Council accepted amendments to accommodate the business community. Of the 24 jurisdictions throughout the country that have passed some type of paid sick leave legislation, Montgomery County has one of the strongest.
The bill will change the lives of 90,000 workers in Montgomery County by eliminating a loophole which allowed employers to terminate workers who get sick and miss a day of work. This new law also has a number of invaluable public health benefits. It provides those who are sick with the option to stay home and recuperate instead of risking infecting the public by continuing to work. Furthermore, the law also allows victims of domestic violence to use the time to deal with the aftermath of said violence.
Maryland lawmakers should use the Montgomery County paid sick leave law as a template for creating a state law that would give the other 610,000 Marylanders who lack paid sick leave the opportunity to take care of their health and that of their family without jeopardizing their job.
