Anti Question 4: Earned Sick Time Penalizes Businesses

Bill Vernon

Bill Vernon

In the interview below, Bill Vernon, state director for the National Federation for Independent Business, speaks against Ballot Question 4, which would grant earned sick time to employees.

Among the other groups against Question 4 is the Retailers Association of America. The following are their arguments against the question as submitted to the Secretary of State.

Question 4 would make Massachusetts the first state to require small and taxpayer funded employers to provide up to a week of mandatory paid sick time and family leave to all employees, including part-timers. The red tape and mandate would be costly to small businesses and taxpayers.

When an employee at a typical office setting calls in sick, other employees usually step in to cover the workload. However, for customer service focused employers or employers with mandatory staffing levels, this may not be an option. These employers would be required to pay twice, once to the employee on leave and a second time to the employee working the shift. It would essentially double their payroll.

One size does not fit all, and small businesses and their employees depend on flexibility to increase salaries and other benefits, not costly state mandates.

 



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