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Paid Sick Leave For All ABQ Workers?

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KUNM Call In Show 8/11 8a: 

Nearly 40 percent of U.S. workers don’t have the option of staying home with pay when they aren’t feeling well. There aren’t any federal laws about who gets sick leave, but the issue could go before Albuquerque voters in November.

Do you get paid sick leave at your job? Who’s affected when staying home just isn’t an option? Should businesses in Albuquerque be required to provide some sick leave to all workers? Or would that cause problems for small business owners and economic growth? Join the conversation. Email callinshow@kunm.org or call in live during the show.

Guests:

• Andrea Serrano, deputy director, Organizers in the Land of Enchantment

• Jason Espinoza, president of the New Mexico Association of Commerce and Industry

• Allen Parkman, professor emeritus, economist

• Dr. Lance Chilton, pediatrician 

• Will Athas, assistant professor, UNM College of Population Health

• Bernalillo County Clerk Maggie Toulouse Oliver

Further Reading:

• Full text of the proposed ordinance, called the Healthy Workforce Act

These Types of Workers Are More Likely to Get Paid Sick LeaveFortune

City’s sick leave question too long for ballot —Albuquerque Journal

Albuquerque residents march for guaranteed paid sick leave —KOAT

More than a third of American workers don’t get sick leave, and they’re making the rest of us ill —Washington Post Wonkblog

Marisa Demarco began a career in radio at KUNM News in late 2013 and covered public health for much of her time at the station. During the pandemic, she is also the executive producer for Your NM Government and No More Normal, shows focused on the varied impacts of COVID-19 and community response, as well as racial and social justice. She joined Source New Mexico as editor-in-chief in 2021.
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