Campaign against law is based on fear, not fact
THE CAMPAIGN against the Albuquerque earned-sick-days ordinance is based in fear-mongering, not fact. Wellconnected business interests falsely claim they support the idea of sick time, but not this law. If true, why spread misinformation about an ordinance that mirrors the many other earned sick laws nationwide, including Arizona’s?
The truth is the ordinance ensures the 107,000 hard-working people in Albuquerque who lack sick time will no longer have to choose between a paycheck and their health. It allows employees to earn and use a maximum of five sick days in small businesses and seven days in larger businesses. Employees can use earned sick time for their own health needs, those of family members, or to escape domestic violence situations.
Studies show economic activity and employee productivity increase in locations that have earned-sick-leave laws compared to neighboring locales that don’t. More generous paid-time-off policies don’t have to change, the recordkeeping requirements are minimal and employers must only track the amount of time earned and taken in payroll records the state already requires them to keep. No need to track paid time off separately from sick time.
The ordinance doesn’t affect an employer’s right to fire or discipline, it just prohibits retaliation for legitimately using sick leave. So if an employer fires an employee within 90 days of using sick time, he must give a reason that is unrelated to sick time.
Local attorneys at the N.M. Center on Law and Poverty wrote the ordinance, with input from dozens of local organizations that support working families and small businesses. A New Mexico court has already ruled the ordinance is legally sound. We believe, along with many Albuquerque businesses, that it’s time to level the playing field so all hardworking New Mexicans can stay healthy and care for family. Vote based on the facts, not misinformation, FOR the ordinance on the back of the ballot. GAIL EVANS Legal Director, New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty