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CALIFORNIA


USA MapBy the Numbers

5,979,747 California workers — 48 percent of the state’s private sector workforce — are not able to take a paid sick day when they are ill. (Data derived using the Institute for Women’s Policy Research Paid Sick Days Calculator and 2008 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

Three in four (73 percent) California voters are in favor of a law allowing all workers to earn paid sick days. (Field Research Corporation poll, released 8/5/08)
About the Campaign

Paid Sick Days Site Photo Campaign CaliBuilding on San Francisco’s historic 2006 victory, the campaign to bring paid sick days to all California workers is coordinated by the California Work and Family Coalition under the leadership of the Labor Project for Working Families, the California Labor Federation and California ACORN.

The paid sick days bill would ensure that all California workers have the right to earn one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked. Workers could use paid sick days to recover from illness, to care for an ill family member, or to seek services related to sexual assault or domestic violence. The bill guarantees employees of businesses with 10 or greater employees the right to use a minimum of nine paid sick days annually. Employees of smaller businesses have the right to use a minimum of five paid sick days annually.

The campaign has advocated for paid sick days legislation since 2008 and is committed to continuing the fight until all California workers have the right to earn and use paid sick days without fear of losing their jobs.

For more information, please visit www.paidsickdaysCA.org.



Partner Profile 

California’s campaign is coordinated by the California Work and Family Coalition under the leadership of the Labor Project for Working Families, the California Labor Federation and California ACORN. The California Work and Family Coalition is a diverse coalition of advocates, community groups and labor unions that promotes family friendly workplace policies for California’s working families through policy work and grassroots activism. The Labor Project for Working Families, founder and coordinator of the Coalition, is a national non-profit organization that educates and empowers unions to organize, bargain and advocate for family friendly workplaces. The California Labor Federation, made up of more than 1,200 AFL-CIO and Change to Win unions and representing 2.1 million union members in a variety of sectors, is dedicated to promoting and defending the interests of working people and their families for the betterment of California’s communities. And with more than 47,000 members, California ACORN is part of the largest grassroots community based organization in the country and strives towards achieving social justice and stronger communities by organizing low to moderate income neighborhoods. 		 


Stories from California
“It is ironic that our least protected, lowest paid workers have the most direct (food, hotel and sanitation workers) and/or indirect (farm workers) contact with the public and therefore the highest impact on public health. It is imperative that all workers be covered by sick leave. I spent a number of years as a temporary worker without sick leave. I had to work whether I was sick or not--to the detriment of my co-workers and everyone I came in contact with. I still cringe when people in my workplace come in sick even though they have sick leave. That's the kind of dedication we DON'T need.”
— J.L., Los Angeles, Calif.


“I'm a caregiver for the elderly. This past winter I got very sick with this very horrible bacterial virus and it just would not go away. I had to have two rounds of anti-biotics to finally kick it and was sick for over five weeks, coughing with a runny nose, etc. I could not go to work and make my elderly clients sick and was told to stay home until I got better. Caregivers don't make a very good wage and in many cases don't even get benefits, and certainly no sick leave. I had to borrow money to pay my rent and bills and am now in debt with no way of catching up.”
— Vera, Santa Rosa, Calif.


“I caught the flu four times last year, and that was with a flu shot. Why? People who took their sick kids to daycare because they had no paid sick time or paid family leave. Going to work sick merely spreads germs and costs employers money in lost production, not to mentions threatens the lives of people like my husband's co-worker, who no long has a spleen do to an accident. Paid sick time makes good sense from a financial perspective and from a public health perspective.”
— Amanda, Walnut Creek, Calif.


“Perfect timing! This week my coworkers came to work VERY sick. I got sick & had to miss 5 days of work unpaid. I refuse to work if I am contagious for this very reason. Employers need to encourage their employees to stay home if they are really sick. I understand there are employees who might take advantage -- but it is not fair to those of us who have weak immune systems.”
— Rebecca, Murietta, Calif.


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