Lawmakers spent about 20 minutes this afternoon discussing a controversial measure that would require businesses with 50 or more workers to offer paid sick days. The bill appeared to pass, although a final tally won't be known until the meeting is over because the committee chairs are holding the votes open.
The issue of paid sick time has been debated several times over the past four years. The difference this year is Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's support of the concept.
Supporters say its a public health issue and a matter of fairness. "People shouldn't be working when they're sick,'' state Sen. Edwin Gomes, a Democrat from Bridgeport, said. "I doubt if anyone in this room goes to work sick.''
Gomes called opposition to the measure "mean-spirited" and said it sends a message that some people are not worthy of staying home when they are ill.
But critics say the bill is a job-killer that would place an undo burden on the state's businesses. "Long before we went into this recession....Connecticut was already one of the most business unfriendly states in this country,'' state Rep. Themis Klarides, R-Derby, said. "Now in this economic time, we chose to do things time after time, over and over again, to make it more business unfriendly.''