Legislative Session Moved Maryland Workers Forward, but Fell Short of Potential
The 2021 legislative session opened amid a once-in-a-lifetime public health and economic crisis, and had potential to bring major improvements for Maryland workers. Several pieces of important, beneficial legislation did move forward, but lawmakers did too little to help working Marylanders weather the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthen our economy in the long run. When the General Assembly next convenes—either next year or during a special session—legislators should build on this session’s victories and make up for lost time in making Maryland a great place to work.
Maryland Essential Workers’ Protection Act
The legislature passed this year’s cornerstone worker protection bill—the Maryland Workers’ Protection Act—on the final day of session. This bill strengthens safety protections for essential workers and puts in place a framework for workers to take paid time off to deal with the impacts of a public health emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic. However, lawmakers stripped out many of the bill’s most beneficial provisions on the way to passage and added loopholes that could enable employers to dodge their responsibilities. Gov. Hogan allowed the bill to become law without his signature.
The Maryland Essential Workers’ Protections Act focuses on worker protections during a public health emergency involving a communicable disease, such as the current pandemic or any similar crisis the state may face in the future. Here’s what the bill does:
- Requires companies in essential sectors to comply with safety standards (including recommendations) developed by federal or state agencies during a public health emergency
- Under certain circumstances, requires employers to provide essential workers no-cost safety equipment and pay for infectious disease testing
- Requires essential employers to post information on safety standards and notify essential workers if one of their colleagues has tested positive
- Specifies that essential workers are covered by existing regulations allowing workers to refuse certain hazardous tasks
- Under certain circumstances, requires employers to provide essential workers with paid leave (14 days for a full-time worker) to deal with impacts of a public health emergency
Before the legislature weakened the bill through amendment, it would have brought more substantial benefits:
- Final bill does not provide hazard pay, give uninsured workers an opportunity to buy low-cost coverage, or require employers to assist workers with health care costs
- Final bill does not require employers to provide public health emergency paid leave days unless the state or federal government set aside money to reimburse them
- Final bill weakens employers’ responsibilities to provide safety equipment and protect workers in case of a positive test
- Final bill excludes contractors and subcontractors from essential worker protections and adds loopholes making it easier for employers to deny protections to more workers
- Final bill eliminates specific, observable criteria for when a worker can refuse a dangerous task, forcing workers to gamble their safety on legal decisions made after the fact
- Final bill adds vaguely worded loopholes allowing employers to claim that workers are “able to obtain” free testing elsewhere or their use of public health emergency leave exhibits a “pattern of abuse”
When the legislature next convenes—either next year or during a special session—lawmakers should fill in the holes in the bill to ensure all essential workers are meaningfully protected during the next public health emergency. We entered the COVID-19 pandemic unprepared to protect workers. Let’s not make the same mistake again.
No Action on Paid Family and Medical Leave
The legislature continued its multi-year streak of inaction on paid family and medical leave. Most Maryland workers—especially those in low-wage jobs, who are disproportionately workers of color—are not guaranteed any paid time off to deal with a major life event like a new child or a serious injury. This means at least another year in which millions of workers face the possibility of having to choose between their livelihood and their health or their family.
Other Victories
Workers saw several other significant victories during this year’s legislative session:
- The legislature passed several bills to improve Maryland’s unemployment insurance These reforms will modestly improve benefits for some workers, make it easier for unemployed workers to get low-cost health insurance, and reduce delays and administrative hurdles. These reforms are sorely needed, as thousands of Maryland workers waited months to receive payments they were owed during the pandemic. Most of these bills have either received final approval from the governor or become law without his signature.
- The legislature passed several bills to improve wages for workers at publicly funded construction projects and major transportation hubs. One of these bills required an override vote, while the governor allowed the other to become law without his signature.
The legislature passed bills to expand collective bargaining rights to workers at the Maryland School for the Deaf and the Baltimore County Public Library. The governor allowed these bills to become law without his signature, as well as legislation prohibiting state agencies from using public dollars to thwart organizing efforts.
