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At-Large Councilmember David Grosso stood outside Barnard Elementary school in Petworth Wednesday evening, handing out flyers and telling parents that this year, if their kid needs to stay home sick, that doesn’t mean they’ll be out a day of work’s pay.
Grosso is joining labor organizers this Back to School Night season to let parents know about legislation he pushed to expand D.C.’s paid sick leave policy, ultimately giving D.C. one of the nation’s strongest paid sick leave policies in the country.
Under the expanding legislation that went into effect in February, tipped workers are now eligible for paid sick leave, and employees start accruing sick time as soon as they are hired. Prior to this, employees had to work at a place for a year before they were legally required to get sick days.
“It is not good public health policy to make a mother or father choose between staying home with a sick child or sending them to school,” Grosso says. “Awarding sick leave to parents creates stability for workers, and I am pleased that my colleagues were able to push this legislation through to make this a reality for many households.”
The Paid Sick Days for All Coalition is behind the fliers and will be handing them out at Back to School Nights throughout the city.
“We do continuous outreach to the public, because we think that employers and workers don’t know their rights under the law,” says Emma Cleveland, an organizer for Employment Justice Center, which leads the coalition.
Flier courtesy of EJC