House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. announced that her coronavirus bill — passed on Saturday — will give all Americans sick leave.
But a New York Times op-ed written by its editorial board said that it’s not true.
The editorial board said Pelosi’s bill only guarantees sick leave for only about 20 percent of the American workforce.
Pelosi’s plan would leave low wage workers to fend for themselves.
Large corporations such as Burger King or Amazon still don’t have to promise their employees any form of sick leave under the proposed bill — should these employees get sick, they’re simply out of luck.
Only companies with less than 50 total employees are eligible for the new paid sick leave measure. According to experts, that means nearly 80 percent of the workforce would be uneligible — and thus reporting to work when feeling ill during the coronavirus pandemic.
Pelosi boasted about the bill, but never acknowledged the details.
The Times board wrote that Pelosi “neglected to mention the fine print.”
Companies are prioritizing profit over best practices during a global health crisis, despite President Donald Trump’s warnings. For example, the dining chain Waffle House recently came under fire when it refused to pay a COVID-19-positive patient who had to miss work and remain home.
Pelosi’s bill enables larges companies to continue to do this.
“Would Ms. Pelosi please explain why the House decided not to require Waffle House to protect its workers and customers by paying for sick leave?” the newspaper asked.
The bill even allows those companies with less than 50 employees to qualify for hardship exemptions from the Labor Department — which wouldn’t require them to pay sick employees that need to miss work.
The bill, solely written to help combat coronavirus, simply doesn’t address the reality on the ground.
Much like Pelosi’s leadership.
The Horn editorial team