Paid Sick Days
Type
Policy Brief or Report
Year
2016
Level
County
State(s)
All States
Policy Areas
Children & Families, Civil Rights, Economic Justice, Health, Health, Housing, Public Safety
More than 40 million Americans still do not have access to paid sick time, and these numbers are concentrated among the lowest-wage workers - 80 percent of whom lack access. The health impacts on employees and on the workplace can be jarring; those without paid sick days are 1.5 times more likely to report to work sick than those with paid sick days. During the H1N1 outbreak of 2009, for instance, eight million Americans reported to work ill - infecting as many as seven million of their co-workers. Meanwhile, allowing employees to stay at home with even one paid "flu day" would allow them to recover and could reduce flu transmission by an estimated 25 percent.