Everyone gets sick, but not everyone has time to get better.
No one should be forced to choose between risking their paycheck and caring for loved ones or themself. Nearly 28 million people — nearly one in five private sector workers — can’t earn a single paid sick day.
Paid sick and safe days allow workers to take brief periods of time away from work they need to attend to their and their family's health. To date, 15 states and many more cities and counties across the country have passed paid sick days laws allowing workers to take time to attend doctor's appointments, pick up sick children from school, accommodate public health emergencies, and businesses or school closures, all with job-protected time they accrue. Many laws also include paid safe days that allow survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and/or stalking to seek services related to these incidents.
That's why the National Partnership supports the federal Healthy Families Act, which would provide all eligible workers with seven paid sick days to recover from illness, access preventive care, or care for a sick family member.
Key Resources
- Paid Sick Days and Abortion Access. When abortion care is already hard to access, a lack of paid sick days adds insult to injury. Learn more about how paid sick days can cover medication abortion care.
- Understanding the Difference Between Paid Sick Days & Paid Family and Medical Leave
- Current Paid Sick Days Laws
- Paid Sick Days — State and District Statutes
- Back-to-School Toolkit
- Paid Sick Days Are Good for Business
- Paid Sick Days Improve Public Health
- Latinos and Their Families Need Paid Sick Days
- African Americans and Their Families Need Paid Sick Days
- The Healthy Families Act
- The Healthy Families Act: Section-by-Section
