Dive Brief:
- Paid sick leave continues to be a serious issue for employers across the U.S. According to Slate, proponents of expanding those benefits to employees nationwide only need to look to New York City to see why the fear-mongers are wrong about the potential costs of paid sick leave.
- According to Slate, in 2013, the New York's City Council passed the Earned Sick Time Act. A year later, the law was revised to cover all employers with more than five workers, down from 15.
- The article points to a new report from the Center for Economic and Policy Research by the economist Eileen Appelbaum and sociologist Ruth Milkman, which found that New York's business community has largely perceived the law’s passage as a “nonevent,” even though more than 3 in 4 employees at the surveyed firms made use of paid sick leaves in 2015.
Dive Insight:
Their survey of 350 random New York businesses representing different firm sizes found that 85% of employers reported the law had no effect on business costs. Also, 91% reported no reduction in hiring, 945 reported no effect on business productivity, and 96% reported no change in customer service. While the knee-jerk reaction was largely negative by some employers, it turns out that in actuality, the mandated change has affected employers little.
The New York City experience should provide fuel to HR leaders who are looking to expand paid sick leave benefits but are getting pushback from senior management. Paid sick leave is picking up steam in the private sector overall. For employers struggling to attract and retain talent, paid sick leave is a potent benefit and, it seems, not the budget buster many believe it will be.
