“It is deeply disappointing that Mayor Nutter chose to thwart the will of Philadelphians and the City Council by siding with the business lobby instead of hard-working families. His veto of the paid sick days bill passed by the City Council earlier this month will effectively deny more than 200,000 Philadelphia workers the right to earn the paid sick days they need to meet their health needs without risking their financial security. This veto is short-sighted and destructive. It will harm workers, families, the public health and the city itself. This is a sad day for Philadelphia.

Overwhelming numbers of Americans and Philadelphians strongly support modest, common sense paid sick days proposals like this one. Despite this setback, the effort to secure paid sick days for all working people — in Philadelphia and around the country — will continue. In the end, measures like this will prevail. Connecticut is about to become the first state to adopt a paid sick days measure, joining San Francisco and the District of Columbia, and similar measures are advancing in cities like Denver, Seattle and New York City.

We commend the Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces, its more than 100 members, and all the workers, allies and City Council members who laid the groundwork for future progress on this issue. They helped bring to light the harm caused when workers lack paid sick days, and set the stage for a future victory.”