Join us for the Philadelphia Fair Workweek Hearing!

From our friends at One PA

On June 14th, Councilwoman Gym, along with 7 co-sponsors, introduced a Fair Workweek bill for Philadelphia. The bill would require that the city's largest employers of food service, retail and hospitality workers provide at least two weeks' advance notice of their schedules. In addition, it would create financial disincentives for employers to keep using the practices of clopening*, and mandatory on-call time, for these workers.

Before the bill can be voted on in Council, it has to have a hearing in the Law and Government Committee. That hearing has now been scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 30th at 2 pm in City Council Chambers.

Will you join us, to make sure that 130,000 Philadelphia service workers are heard, and to pass an important hurdle on the way to winning a Fair Workweek? RSVP now!

*clopening refers to a schedule where a worker is scheduled to close a business down on one night, and open again the next morning, without an 11-hour rest period in between.

City Council to Introduce Resolution to Study Paid Sick Days for All Workers

Philadelphia City Councilman Bill Greenlee will be introducing a resolution on Thursday, September 12, asking the city to study the economic opportunities available to women in Philadelphia.

This resolution is part of ongoing work with elected officials ways to grow the middle class and the economy, including family leave, extending FMLA to siblings, affordable childcare, earned sick days, and equal pay as ways.

If you support this effort, please take a moment to sign on our petition asking Philadelphia City Council members and the Mayor to support earned sick time, and the work-family balance agenda.

Failed Sick Leave Bill Still Haunts Councilman

from Mike Dunn, KYW NewsRadio. Read the full piece at http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2013/05/13/failed-sick-leave-bill-still-haunts-philadelphia-councilman/#.UZDlQusUyiA.email

Last week, the New York City Council approved mandatory paid sick leave.

This brings a sickening feeling to the Philadelphia councilman who tried, but failed to get the measure approved here.

In April, Councilman at large Bill Greenlee came up just one vote short of the 12 votes he needed to override Mayor Michael Nutter’s veto of his earned sick leave bill.

Philadelphia Labor Shows Support for Earned Sick Days

Philadelphia's labor leaders have sent a message to City Council members asking them to override the Mayor's veto of earned sick days. The cover letter is below (it went to all members who voted against the bill, not just Councilman Squilla) and the text of the message is copied as well.

Dear Councilmember,

Philadelphia’s families are counting on you to stand up for their jobs, their health and their economic security by signing the 2013 Promoting Healthy Families and Workplaces Bill. Nearly 200,000 Philadelphians are unable to earn any paid sick time, which means they are forced to work sick or stay home and risk losing critical income or their job. And we urge you to side with families instead of corporate lobbyists by voting to override Mayor Nutter’s shortsighted veto of the earned sick days bill.

Earned sick days are a core issue of economic security for working families in our city. For an average family without sick days, losing 3.5 days of wages is the equivalent to losing an entire month of groceries. Beyond the loss of income, almost a quarter of workers in the US say they have been fired or threatened with job loss for missing work due to illness or caring for a sick loved one.

Getting the flu shouldn’t get you fired, and the money flooding from corporate lobbyists shouldn’t drown out the voices of hundreds of thousands of Philadelphia’s workers and voters who strongly support and desperately need earned sick days.

New census data shows that Philadelphia leads the nation in “deep poverty” among big cities. We need to rebuild an economy that works for everyone. Post--‐recession, most of the jobs being created are low--‐ wage and part time jobs with few, if any, family protections. We need to make sure that the jobs created in Philadelphia are jobs that can support a family and that working people can cover the basics. Earned sick days is a modest policy that will strengthen financial security for families, and boost the economy by making sure they have money in their pockets to spend at local businesses.

Over the past two years the earned sick days bill has adopted 23 amendments through collaboration with the business community that provide special provisions for mom--‐and--‐pop shops and promote the flexibility that small businesses need to thrive, while still protecting the jobs of hardworking Philadelphians. Enabling working people to earn paid sick days will have immediate public health benefits, preventing the needless spread of illness through workplaces and schools by enabling workers to recover and parents to care for sick children at home without fear of retaliation. Beyond the public health benefits, studies show that earned sick days will save Philadelphia’s employers half a million dollars a year, and save the city $10.3 million a year in health care costs by reducing preventable emergency room visits.

Most of the hardworking men and women that we represent already earn paid sick days as part of their negotiated contracts. But we believe that everyone deserves to be able to care for their health or that of a loved one, without the risk of losing wages or being terminated. It’s in everyone’s interest to make sure that earned sick days are a basic workplace standard for all Philadelphians.

Philadelphia should join with other cities and states that have taken the step to rebuilding an economy that works for everyone by making earned sick days a basic workplace right. We urge you to put the interests of families first and we are counting on your leadership to make earned sick days a reality for Philadelphia.

Sincerely,

Signatories:
Pat Gillespie, Business Manager, Phila. Building Trades
John Dougherty, Business Manager, IBEW Local 98
Nancy Minor, VP, USW Local 1
Steven Keenan, Plumbers Union Local 690
C. A. O'Brien, IAM Local 1776
Emily Randle, Political Director, PASNAP
James Gardler, President, Local 13000
Joseph Baselice, Seafarers Int'l Union, MPC
Mike McDonough, Gas Workers' Local 686
Ted Kirsch, President, PA-AFT
Bill Gault, President, IAFF Local 22
Michael Barnes, IATSE Local 8
Patricia Eakin, President, PA Assn of Staff Nurses & Allied Professionals (PASNAP)
Cathy Scott, President, AFSCME DC47
UNITE HERE, Bob McDevitt
Paul Dannenfelser, President AFSCME Local 1723
Jacqueline Marshall, President, AFSCME Local 2187
Alfreda Jones, VP, AFSCME Local 2186
Katherine Black, President, Philadelphia CLUW
Barbara Rahke, Director, PhilaPOSH
Fred Wright, President, AFSCME Local 1739
Jerry Jordan, President, PFT
Louise Carpino, President, AFSCME Local 810
George Ricchezza, SEIU32bj, District 1201
Wayne MacManiman, Jr., Mid-Atlantic SEIU32bj

One Day. One Vote. One Chance to Make a Difference. Just Make One Call.

On April 11, Philadelphia City Council will hold a vote that can change the lives of 200,000 Philadelphians who have no access to earned sick days.

With 77 percent of Philadelphians supporting an override of the Mayor's veto, now is the time for City Council to stand up and lead on the issue of earned sick days.

11 Councilmembers are already on board. It only takes one more yes vote to keep Philadelphia's families financially secure.

Will you help us get there?

Here is what you can do to join the community in support of earned sick days:

-Call your Councilmembers right now and ask for their support on earned sick days.



-Ask your friends, family members, colleagues, and members to do the same.

-Join our Twitter rally at 1 PM EST on April 10.

-Come out to City Council on Thursday, April 11, at 10 AM in support of earned sick days.


To reach City Council, you can use our Click-to-Call feature (above) where you can enter your contact details to be connected to the Councilmembers.

You can also reach the Councilmembers using our toll-free Earned Sick Days Hotline at 888-376-5807.

You can call the members directly using the numbers below:
1st District Councilman Squilla: (215) 686-3458 or (215) 686-3459
At-Large Councilman Kenney: (215) 686-3450 or (215) 686-3451
At-Large Councilman O'Brien: (215) 686-3440 or (215) 686-3441
Looking for the right words to say?

"Hi, my name is [NAME].
I live/work in Philadelphia, and as a constituent, I am calling to tell the Councilman that I support earned sick days for all Philadelphia workers and to ask him to overturn the Mayor's veto.
Paid sick days are about justice. Families need to know that one flu won't cost them their jobs or their financial security."

If you have a personal story about earned sick days, share it with the staffer.
You can also ask the person who answers the phone if the Councilman plans to vote to override the veto.

After your call, please report back on how it went!

Press Release: Pressure Mounting on City Council to Side with Families, Override Mayoral Veto of Sick Days

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, April 9, 2013
CONTACT: Emma Stieglitz, emmaS@berlinrosen.com, (646) 200-5307
Jonathan Lipman, Lipman@berlinrosen.com, (773) 580-1603

NURSES RALLY FOR EARNED SICK DAYS AS NEW POLL SHOWS OVERWHELMING SUPPORT AMONG PHILLY VOTERS

Pressure Mounting on City Council to Side with Families, Override Mayoral Veto of Sick Days

PHILADELPHIA—As nurses and childcare professionals rallied at City Hall to urge City Council to side with Philadelphia families and override Mayor Nutter’s veto of the Earned Sick Days bill, a new poll was released today showing overwhelming support for the measure among Philadelphia voters.

The earned sick days bill would protect nearly 200,000 Philadelphians who are currently unable to earn paid sick days, preventing them from taking time off when they or their families are ill. The bill passed Philadelphia City Council 11-6, but was vetoed by Mayor Nutter. Supporters are pressing for Council to override that veto on Thursday.

The new survey of 590 Philadelphia voters from Public Policy Polling shows a strong 77 percent of Philadelphia voters supporting a law requiring businesses to allow earned sick time. In addition, 68 percent support an override of the mayor’s veto, and a plurality of voters say that a council member’s failure to override the veto would make them less likely to vote for that council member.

Support for sick days was particularly strong among growing parts of Philadelphia’s electorate:
• 84% of women strongly support a law guaranteeing earned sick days and a whopping 95% support it overall;
• 73% of independent voters support the law.
• 93% of Hispanic voters in Philadelphia strongly support the law, with only 1 percent voicing any opposition.

“This polling tells us what we already knew to be true, that Philadelphians support, want and need earned sick days,” said Marianne Bellesorte, senior director of policy at Pathways PA and a leader of The Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces, which supports the bill. “We urge the City Council to listen to their constituents, not to corporate lobbyists, and side with families by overriding the Mayor’s veto on earned sick days.”

Nurses and caregivers today told council how especially crucial earned sick days are for working parents, who without paid sick days can face the terrible dilemma of choosing between caring for a sick child or earning the money needed to pay for that child’s needs.

“Being able to earn paid sick days is a basic protection for working families,” said Patricia Eakin, PASNAP President and an Emergency Room Nurse at Temple University Hospital. “Parents should be able to take a few hours off work to take their kids to a doctor during the day; otherwise a child’s sickness could worsen and result in a trip to the ER. A job should be what enables you to care for and support your family, not what prevents you from caring for them.”

Research shows that families without access to sick days are also the ones least able to afford unpaid time off. The issue is compounded for working parents who are often forced to send sick children to school because they cannot afford to take care of sick children at home. Studies have shown that parents with earned sick days are 20 percent less likely to send a sick child to school and that when parents care for sick children at home, they get better sooner and reduce the risk spreading the illness to their classmates. A new study from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) shows that sick days would save Philadelphia an estimated $10.3 million a year in healthcare costs by reducing preventable emergency room visits.

Lawmakers and business leaders around the country are supporting earned sick time as a policy that strengthens the economy by keeping people in their jobs. This March, Portland, OR became the fourth city to adopt paid sick days, and New York City is poised to become the 5th US city, and the largest city yet, to pass a paid sick days law. Statewide bills are moving forward in Vermont and Massachusetts. Residents of Orange County, FL, should be able to vote for sick days in August 2014 thanks to 50,000 voters who petitioned for the ballot initiative.

These recent wins and active campaigns build on past victories in Connecticut, which passed the first statewide law in 2011, Seattle in 2011, Washington DC in 2008, San Francisco in 2006, and a November 2012 ballot initiative in Long Beach, California granting sick days to hotel workers. At the federal level, Rep. Rosa DeLauro and Sen. Tom Harkin introduced the Healthy Families Act this month, which would set a national sick days standard.

###

Join Us For a Twitter Rally!

Join us!

What: Twitter rally for Philly paid sick days
When: 1– 2 pm ET
Where: Tweet from anywhere
Who: We’re targeting the #PhillyCouncil as a whole and particularly Councilmembers Mark Squilla (@cmmarksquilla), Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) and Dennis O’Brien (@CouncilOBrien). Urge them to vote YES on the override.

Sample tweets (feel free to use these or draft your own personalized ones):
UPDATED 4/10/13 - Find more sample tweets here! Find Twitter handles for all Councilmembers here!

• .@cmmarksquilla 77% of #Philly voters want #PhillyCouncil to override Mayor’s #paidsickdays veto. Do you stand with us? Vote YES on Thurs.
• .@JimFKenney, #Philly voters want #paidsickdays and polling shows they won’t support candidates who deny them. Vote YES on Thurs.
• On Thurs, #PhillyCouncil can stand with workers & families, or with corporate interests. What will you do, @CouncilOBrien? #paidsickdays
• Think #Philly workers deserve to earn #paidsickdays? Call #PhillyCouncil TODAY, tell them to override veto: fb.me/1CInCKC77
• #PhillyCouncil, sick #kids and working parents are depending on you. Please vote to override Mayor’s #paidsickdays veto. #Philly #p2
• I don’t want to get sick because my server couldn’t afford to stay home. #PhillyCouncil please vote for #paidsickdays. #Philly
• 77% of Philly voters want #phillycouncil to override the #paidsickdays veto. Will you stand with voters, @cmmarksquilla?
• 90% of Philly voters support a #paidsickdays law. Will you stand with them, @CouncilOBrien?
• A plurality of voters say they are less likely to vote for a #phillycouncil member who refuses to overturn the mayor's #paidsickdays veto.

Join Us at City Hall Thursday, April 11 for the Paid Sick Days Veto Override Vote!

The Philadelphia City Council will be holding a veto override vote on Councilman Greenlee's paid sick days bill this Thursday. It is our last chance to provide paid sick time to all Philadelphians.

Please come and show your support at City Council beginning at 10AM!

Listen to Marianne Bellesorte ofPathWays PA fight for Paid Sick Days yesterday on WHYY Radio Times!

Call City Council members at: 888-376-5807 to voice your support for the bill. You can also tweet your support at #paidsickdays!