Hawaii-2023-SR183-Introduced

WHEREAS, most workers in the State, at some time during the year, need temporary time off from work to take care of personal health needs or the health needs of family members; and

WHEREAS, under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, as amended (FMLA), certain employees who work for employers with fifty or more employees are eligible for twelve weeks of unpaid job-protected leave for qualifying reasons such as a serious health condition of the employee that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of the employee's job; to care for the employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent with a serious health condition; qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a military member on covered active duty; the birth of a child and to bond with the newborn child; and placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care and to bond with the newly placed child; and

WHEREAS, under chapter 398, Hawaii Revised Statutes, Hawaii's family leave law, certain employees who work for employers with one hundred or more employees are eligible for up to four weeks of unpaid job-protected leave for qualifying reasons such as the birth of a child of the employee or the adoption of a child; and to care for the employee's child, spouse, reciprocal beneficiary, sibling, grandchild, or parent with a serious health condition; and

WHEREAS, the FMLA and Hawaii's family leave law, however, do not require the protected leave to be paid leave; and

WHEREAS, paid sick leave refers to short-term time off from work that workers can use when they are sick, injured, or receiving medical treatment, including mental health and preventive care; and

WHEREAS, workers also may be able to use their sick leave to care for a family member; and

WHEREAS, according to the federal Bureau of Statistics, approximately twenty-three percent of private industry workers in the United States do not have access to paid sick leave; and

WHEREAS, paid sick leave becomes scarcer for workers with lower earnings; in fact, among those in the lowest ten percent of earners, just thirty-eight percent have any paid sick time; and

WHEREAS, working family caregivers cannot adequately care for their relatives without access to paid sick leave; and

WHEREAS, the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has magnified the need for paid sick leave; and

WHEREAS, existing state law does not require employers to provide employees with paid sick leave; and

WHEREAS, fourteen states, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, and Washington, D.C. have enacted paid family and medical leave laws; and

WHEREAS, establishment of a state paid sick leave law that provides workers with the right to paid sick leave is essential to:

(1) Ensure that all workers in the State can address their own health needs and the health needs of their families by requiring employers to provide a minimum level of paid sick leave, including time for family care;

(2) Diminish public and private health care costs in the State by enabling workers to seek early and routine medical care for themselves and their family members;

(3) Protect public health in the State by reducing the risk of contagion;

(4) Promote economic security and stability of workers and their families in the State;

(5) Protect employees in the State from losing their jobs when they use sick leave to care for themselves or their families; and

(6) Safeguard public welfare, health, safety, and the prosperity of the people of the State;

now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2023, that the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations is requested to conduct a study on the implementation of a state program that requires employers to provide a minimum amount of paid sick leave and supplemental paid sick leave to employees, with a focus on the effects of mandatory paid sick leave on small businesses and low-income employees; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study is requested to consider the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act, and various federal and state laws on health benefits, temporary disability, and workers compensation with the purpose of providing sick leave to all employees, as defined in section 398-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, including the coverage of employers and employees not covered by collective bargaining units; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations is requested to invite the following organizations to participate in the study:

(1) Hawaii Restaurant Association;

(2) Retail Merchants of Hawaii, Inc.;

(3) UNITE HERE Local 5;

(4) Hawaii Children's Action Network Speaks;

(5) Hawaii Workers Center; and

(6) Any other employer, representative, or agency deemed appropriate by the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2024; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Labor and Industrial Relations; Executive Director of the Hawaii Restaurant Association; President of Retail Merchants of Hawaii, Inc.; President of UNITE HERE Local 5; President of Hawaii Children's Action Network Speaks; and Chair of the Executive Committee of the Board of the Hawaii Workers Center.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Employment; Paid Sick Leave; Study; Department of Labor and Industrial Relations; Report; SB342 (2023)

THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	183
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023
STATE OF HAWAII