California Gov. Gavin Newsom approved a measure earlier this month that reinstates supplemental COVID-19 paid sick leave, which expired last year even as COVID-19 ravaged communities. This measure retroactively applies to January of this year and will extend to Sept. 30. This will significantly impact workers across the state, who can now have time to recover from COVID-19 without risking their lives and livelihood.
Newsom only took this measure thanks to massive pressure from labor unions across California, including the Service Employees International Union and United Food and Commercial Workers, which organized for months to pass paid sick leave. Bob Schoonover, president of SEIU California, said, “Make no mistake: today’s agreement happened because workers who are on the frontline of the pandemic demanded safety for ourselves, our families and our communities. We spoke up about the impossible choices we faced without enough sick time to recover from COVID-19 without our kids going hungry.”
“We know we can’t wait for employers to keep us safe — we have to advocate for ourselves,” he added.
UFCW, representing 180,000 workers in California, also demanded an immediate reinstatement of supplemental COVID-19 leave as a “public health imperative.”
The supplemental COVID-19 paid sick leave policy will allow workers at businesses with 26 or more employees to receive 40 hours of paid time off to recover from a COVID-19 infection. It additionally allows workers to care for a sick family member and take care of children who are out of school due to virus-related interruptions. To be eligible for over 40 hours, workers “must show proof that they or a family member has tested positive for COVID-19.”
The employment rate for women workers declined steeply since the pandemic broke out. One report estimates that mothers being forced to leave their jobs or reduce work hours to take on work at home “amounts to $64.5 billion per year in lost wages and economic activity.” Therefore, this measure will greatly alleviate the burden experienced by women workers during the pandemic who have been disproportionately forced to fulfill childcare duties and other family labor during the pandemic.
The legislation allocated over $6.1 billion in economic assistance for employers, disproving right-wing claims that this is a measure that will hurt small businesses. Plus, these additional funds came just months after small businesses received $6.2 billion in tax relief. Right wingers also claimed that allowing workers to take time off will discourage them from getting vaccinated — a completely bogus claim that only tries to impede the right of workers to take time off when sick and not have to come to work and potentially put others at risk of infection.
It is also important to note that it is ultimately up to employers to grant this paid leave to workers. Workers still have to submit a written or oral request to their employer. Realistically, this process will require workers to be aware of this policy and to feel comfortable with requesting COVID leave without fear of retaliation or job loss. Even so, the passing of this measure is a step in the right direction, but more stringent regulation and enforcement is needed.
Having paid sick leave to recover from a virus that has ravaged the world and caused over 900,000 deaths in the United States is just common sense. In a country without federal sick leave even two years into the pandemic, it is unthinkable to force workers to choose between paying bills and feeding their families on the one hand and avoiding sickness due to COVID-19 on the other. In a brutal capitalist system like the United States, basic protective measures for workers need to be fought for by a concerted movement and widespread pressure. The successful passing of this measure now sets a precedent for enacting similar measures for workers elsewhere in the country.
