Spokane is moving toward having its version of a sick leave/ safe leave law. It would be require employers with fewer than 10 people to have 3 days of sick leave and employers that are larger than that to have 5 days. While Mayor David Condon has vetoed it, it did pass 6 to 1. So it’ll likely still pass the council.
I have to say, I’m really glad that they’re passing something, but this makes me pretty nervous:
Calling the law “arbitrary,” Condon said his decision to veto also came from a lack of clarity on how the city would enforce the new requirements, or how much it would cost the city. He suggested he prefers incentives to requirements.
“I’m more of a carrot than a stick type of person,” Condon said.
Here in Seattle, we’ve had a tough enough time enforcing our sick leave/safe leave law with mayors who ostensibly support it. I hope he’ll enforce it when it does become law, but if you want to contact him and make sure, you can do that here. If you want to contact the city council and ask them to override the veto, you an do that here.
Also, just like in Seattle, this is a sick leave/ safe leave law, not just a sick leave law. News reports I’ve been reading about this don’t mention it, and they really should.* I couldn’t figure out exactly what qualifies people for safe leave on Spokane’s website, but all their material is pretty clear that it’s a part of the law. If anyone has more details, I’d love to know them.
* For what it’s worth, local media have been pretty bad at addressing the safe leave aspect of Seattle’s law. I’m never sure if getting away from an abusive relationship or taking time off after sexual violence is seen as a woman thing so not as important or if sick leave is just a phrase people understand. It’s still pretty frustrating.
The city council overrode the veto.
http://www.spokesman.com/stori.....res-emplo/
In other news, the passing of paid sick leave in Spokane has caused my state senator to think Seattle is an illness.
Republican Sen. Mike Baumgartner introduced Tuesday what he’s calling the “Seattle quarantine” bill, which would prevent city councils across the state from placing new worker rules on businesses. As currently written, it would void laws already such as the family and medical leave ordinance which the Spokane Council passed Monday over Mayor David Condon’s veto but Baumgartner conceded Tuesday existing laws would likely have to be grandfathered in later discussions.
http://www.spokesman.com/blogs.....lace-laws/
I encourage all of you to send snail mail letters to state senator Baumgartner letting him know that you’d be happy to keep your diseased tax dollars in Seattle. Wouldn’t want them infecting the good people of Spokane and Cheney.
His mailing address is:
Michael Baumgartner
404 Legislative Building
PO Box 40406
Olympia, WA 98504
From the FAQs on the City of Spokane website:
2. What is safe leave?
Safe leave is paid time an employee can take off work to take care of issues related to domestic violence, harassment, or stalking. Safe leave can be used to find a new place to live, to seek legal advice, to appear at court hearings, or to seek counseling related to domestic violence, harassment, or stalking.