According to the Connecticut Business & Industry Association, businesses are urging state legislators to oppose a bill that mandates paid sick leave.
Connecticut”™s organized businesses maintain the bill would significantly increase business costs, make Connecticut companies less competitive, cause workplace disruptions and hurt employees. They assert the bill would hit small businesses and those that rely on part-time and seasonal help the hardest.
“This bill would require employers to provide paid sick leave to all hourly employees with indefinite carryover to future years, further increasing costs and seriously harming businesses in Connecticut as well as the state’s economy,” said Bonnie Stewart, CBIA vice president of government affairs. “The bill targets smaller, service industry employers and seasonal companies, the ones that can least afford it.”
According to Expansion Management magazine, which provides information to help companies make location decisions, Connecticut’s “legislative quotient” is dead last in its 50-state ranking for 2007. The “legislative quotient” examines the impact state legislatures have on the business climate.
Hundreds of business people from across Connecticut submitted letters to their legislators asking them to reject the bill
“We care about our employees and want to keep and recruit good people,” said Jennifer Hite, human resources manager at Turbine Engine Component Technologies Co. of Newington.
“Most businesses like us offer generous sick time policies, but these are developed over time, based on market conditions, competition, work flow and more.”
According to a recent CBIA survey, 69 percent of employers offer paid sick leave to their employees. Stewart added that this bill is a one-size-fits-all approach that doesn’t allow businesses the flexibility to deal with the needs of their employees.
“The business community urges legislators to listen to their concerns and vote against this anti-business proposal,” said Stewart. “They should take actions to encourage job creation and reduce barriers to economic growth in Connecticut.”
