Proposal To Require Paid Sick Leave Dies in California Senate

On Thursday, the Senate Appropriations Committee killed a bill that would have required California employers to offer paid sick leave to workers, the Sacramento Bee reports.

Under AB 2716 by Assembly member Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco), workers would have received one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Businesses with fewer than 10 employees would have had to provide up to five days of sick leave, while larger businesses would have had to provide up to nine days of paid sick leave annually.

According to the Bee, the bill did not win passage largely because of the projected cost of implementing and enforcing the requirement. A Senate analysis projected those costs at $900,000 next year and questioned whether the state would have to reimburse counties for paid sick leave for workers who provide in-home services to elderly, blind and disabled people.

Ma pledged to reintroduce the bill next year (Sanders, Sacramento Bee, 8/8).