[Associate professor Nicolas] Ziebarth says: “Recently enacted sick leave mandates have significantly reduced [influenza-like-illness] infection rates by giving employees the possibility to take sick days rather than going to work sick and spreading diseases.”

“We have a hotline for people to call if they’re having problems accessing paid family leave or paid sick time, which we have here in New York City,” [A Better Balance’s Sherry] Leiwant said. “We hear all the time from people how life-changing it is having these benefits and how important they are for taking care of their families.”

Plenty of us have had to make the uncomfortable decision of whether or not to go to work sick. Thanks to unforgiving sick leave policies and company cultures that encourage you to “push through” illness, taking a legit sick day feels rarer and rarer.

Can’t go into work because you’re watching the kids due to school cancellations this week? How about an elderly family member whose care center has been closed? If you live in Minneapolis or St. Paul, you may still be entitled to your normal wages.

The flu bug does not discriminate. But the equity ends there. Calling in sick is more costly in America to those who can afford it least, and we all share the burden via infected workplaces, schools and child care.

As Mainers, looking out for each other is a fundamental part of who we are. The lack of earned paid sick leave in this state goes against everything we stand for.

Paid time off may sound like a luxury, but it’s also a public health issue: More than 90 percent of food-borne Norovirus contamination occurs during food preparation.

Anyone who says they believe in family should be willing to support the ability of a mother to stay home with a sick child. In fact, we have those policies in place with our staff in the Legislature.

For Krystal Delnoce, ‘21, who said she is first-generation low-income (FLI) student who works at Dillon Gymnasium as a children’s swim instructor and at Murray-Dodge cafe, the rule may come in handy. She said that she has previously found it difficult to take time off from her jobs when she was ill.

As a pediatrician, I applaud the recently-passed Earned Sick Time Act. This law makes it possible for working Michiganders and their families to see a doctor, rest when they are sick, and care for a loved one without losing a day’s pay or risking getting fired.

Under the new policy, employees can leave work to address safety issues or take care of personal health problems, and [student workers] can potentially provide care for their roommate under an expanded definition of caregiver, [Director of Benefits Drew] Murphy said.

“When you don’t have leave, a day off of work can mean eight hours with no wages, and make someone’s job vulnerable,” LeaAnne DeRigne, an associate professor at Florida Atlantic University’s Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work, told Bloomberg Law. “If you can be in trouble for taking a paid sick day,” and it puts your job in jeopardy, “then you’re really in a scary and insecure financial situation.”

[M]y brothers and sisters and I carry on my father’s vision of a business rooted in community, which to us means caring for those that help the community grow and thrive. That’s why we strongly support the recently-passed legislation giving Michigan workers the opportunity to earn paid sick time, so Michiganders can take a short time away from work to recover from an illness or care for a sick family member without disrupting their household’s budget or the fear of losing their job.

While worrying about making ends meet is a common concern for many Americans, new research shows that it is even more troublesome for working adults without paid sick leave.

Lawmakers and [Gov. Phil] Murphy have said 1.2 million workers, many in food and personal-care services, would benefit from the new law.

“If you miss your court hearing, then you don’t get your protective order,” said [Marium] Durrani, who, before she joined the National Network to End Domestic Violence, was a lawyer representing victims of domestic violence in court. “Or you miss your job and your employer finds grounds to terminate you, and you probably don’t have resources to combat that. Beyond the physical and emotional implications of abuse, there are these long reaching ramifications.”

[The Pennsylvania Health Action Network] sees many people each year who, though insured, cite barriers to getting care, including difficulty getting paid time off from employers to see their doctors when they are ill. This is a public health crisis, and it’s one that is disproportionately affecting women, African American and Latino workers, all of whom are overrepresented among low-wage workers and among part-time workers.

[Trustee Muriel] Collison has previously said that since the board’s decision to opt out, the issue has been on her mind. A number of full-time workers in Northbrook told Collison that not only do they not receive paid sick days, but that if they miss work for more than three days in a year, for whatever reason, they would be fired, she said.