From The Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/katrina-vanden-heuvel-lack-of-paid-sick-leave-is-unhealthy-for-america/2013/04/02/06f5fec4-9ad5-11e2-a941-a19bce7af755_story.html
By Katrina vanden Heuvel
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Ian Rizzio was a 24-year-old mechanical engineering student in Portland, Oregon, managing a sandwich shop to pay his tuition. One day, he woke up sick, but went to work anyway, as he later testified to the Portland City Council. After vomiting in the bathroom, Rizzio spent two hours trying — unsuccessfully — to reach his boss before going home to rest.
When Rizzio came into work the next day, he was fired immediately. With $35,000 in student loans, he feared he’d have to withdraw from school.
Unfortunately, Rizzio is not alone.
More than 40 million Americans — disproportionately low-income, black and Latino workers — cook, clean, fold, and ring us up without any paid time off when they or their children are ill. On any given day, these workers must choose between caring for a sick child and their job. They handle our food and our purchases, coughing and sniffling through Kleenex, to avoid being handed a pink slip.
The absence of paid sick leave is a glaring injustice that puts American workers in the distinguished company of workers in Syria, Somalia and North Korea. It’s an affront to our values and the dignity of a hard day’s work. And it’s a drag on our families, our businesses, and our society.
For all the vibrant national debate on work/life balance and encouraging women to “lean in” at their workplace, sometimes we need to make it easier for women and men—for all working adults—to stay home.
Continue reading at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/katrina-vanden-heuvel-lack-of-paid-sick-leave-is-unhealthy-for-america/2013/04/02/06f5fec4-9ad5-11e2-a941-a19bce7af755_story.html
