Some Good News for a Change

Leave it to Portland, Oregon, to come up with a progressive paid sick leave law or ordinance. This idea is also catching on in other cities and other states around the country.

There is nothing worse than having colleagues come to work sick. Being the way that I am, I am very vulnerable to getting sick.

I was even illegally fired for being ill back in early 2008.

In each location, the movement for paid sick days is backed by a broad coalition that includes dozens of partners from labor (including unions like UFCW and AFSCME, and Working America and the Working Families Party) together with small-business owners and groups that advocate for women, children, seniors, public health, racial justice and LGBT rights (Portland’s coalition is a member of the Family Values @ Work Consortium, a network of 21 state coalitions working for policies like paid sick days, of which I serve as executive director). But what’s most notable is how these groups have engaged new activists like Lund, who hadn’t been politically active before, but who share the common experience of fearing for their jobs if they or their child gets sick.