While the legislature is in session, the National Federation of Independent Business/California will be profiling anti-small business bills and the adverse effect they would have on California’s job creators. This is the third column of that series.
It seems that our state legislators continue to experience a chronic case of short-term memory. It would be the only logical reason that they continue to propose bill after bill every year that add additional burdens and mandates to small businesses in California. The latest in the string of these “Menaces” is Assembly Bill 1000, by Assembly Member Fiona Ma.
This is an identical twin of last session’s AB 2716 by the same author – same bad policy, new bill number. It would require every California employer to provide each employee with paid sick leave. Once an employee works only seven days in California, they would start to earn paid sick leave benefits, and within 90 days they would be able to begin taking time off for themselves or relatives. This mandate covers seasonal and part-time employees and would be required regardless of an employer’s ability to pay. Furthermore, as a “gimme” to the trial lawyer lobby, it would include fines, penalties and the right to sue if an employer is unable to comply with this one-size-fits-all mandate.
Last year, an NFIB Research Foundation study on identical legislation found that this paid sick leave mandate would cost the average small business owner more than $30,000 while losing more than $15,000 in sales. The most frightening finding from this study was that this mandate would cost California more than 370,000 jobs. Add that to the more than 600,000 jobs lost in the past year and the number is staggering.
When paid sick leave failed last year California’s unemployment rate was tragic 7.7 percent. Today, that level of unemployment seems like a dream as more than one in tem Californians cannot find a job (March 2009 unemployment rate: 11.2 percent). The Senate Appropriations Committee let the bill die in August last year based on the fiscal impact it would have on California at that time. How are things better for small business and employees than they were twelve months ago?
Moreover, it is patently false to assume small business owners are not doing the right thing within these challenging economic times to provide their employees leave opportunities as they are able. Several NFIB surveys have shown that 96 percent of small employers already offer and honor some sort of comprehensive leave program, and 70 percent specifically offer and honor paid sick leave to their employees. But surveys aside – small business owners want to do what is right for their employees, many of whom are like family. Many of them work with their employees to come up with a plan that works for everyone and keeps the business open and running.
NFIB opposes mandated paid sick leave policy because it will significantly drive up the cost of operating a business and result in lost jobs. It is never a good time to impose government mandates and new costs on struggling small employers, most of who have little to no profit margin.
Our state leaders need to allow small business owners to do what they do best: create jobs without the interference of government mandates and regulations. Especially during the trying financial times that California is facing – that’s the only way we’re going to dig out of this hole.