Work Strong Austin Paid Sick Leave Campaign

Although Austin is dependent on its service workers, those workers are not always able to depend on Austin, specifically regarding their sick days. Various city workers stood before the Austin City Council in September to discuss the lack of paid sick leave and its impact on their lives.

“It’s just a basic human right that if you’re sick, in any industry, that you shouldn’t have to [work],” said Laura Rosen, member of Work Strong Austin coalition. “Especially if you have kids or family crises, you shouldn’t have to worry about having to cover your basic expenses.”

According to data from the Work Strong Austin coalition, 37 percent of the Austin workforce does not have paid sick days. Work Strong Austin launched a campaign Sept. 4 to address the issue. The coalition, along with other community groups, took a resolution before city council that would begin a process of gathering and studying the possibility and impact of requiring Austin businesses to provide paid sick leave.

The intentions of this process, called a stakeholder process, were outlined by a resolution, unanimously adopted by the council members. From this vote, the city manager organized the execution of the stakeholder process, which included input from community members such as Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce, Home Builders Association of Greater Austin, and Austin Independent School District. The stakeholder groups met at three meetings in November and were provided a platform for public input, opinion and perspective on sick leave, said Rosen.

“At the first meeting there was an even turnout [of people against and for], but at the subsequent meetings, there appeared to be more from the advocate side,” Rosen said.

These meetings first began as forum for personal stories and then the following were for discussing actual policy. Councilmember Greg Casar is the sponsor for the paid sick leave resolution. With the stakeholder process complete, Casar hopes for an ordinance to be produced and passed by February 2018, according to Rosen.

Although Casar was unable to give a quote currently about the campaign, he was present during the stakeholder process and spoke via Facebook Live about health benefits for paid sick leave while receiving a flu shot at a Work Strong Austin block party.

“In cities that have passed paid sick days policy, flu infection has decreased by six to seven percent,” Casar said.

Work Strong Austin is a coalition of various Austin organizations pursuing better opportunities for workers. Their fact sheet includes information such as the benefits of paid sick leave for families, the economy and public health.

Workers will typically not use all their paid sick days when offered them, but the inclusion creates a positive working environment, according to Kristie Loescher, professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

“Any business that says paid sick leave will cost them more money in the end, I challenge them to actually track their productivity,” Loescher said. “They will find that workers who have to work sick, are not beneficial to business.”

The coalition continues to actively advocate for paid sick leave. The organization joined the Workers Defense Project and community members caroling on Dec. 8 in Downtown Austin, at their event “All I want for Christmas is Paid Sick Days”. Currently, councilmembers will work on creating an ordinance for discussion and future voting.

“For right now, it’s just a matter of waiting,” Rosen said.