ST. LOUIS -- Voters in Missouri, Nebraska, and Alaska will soon decide whether workers in those states should be entitled to paid sick leave.
If approved, the ballot measures would allow many workers to accrue paid time off, a benefit supporters say means workers -- especially those with low-paying jobs -- would no longer have to fear losing wages or possibly the jobs themselves for getting sick. Proponents say such policies benefit the broader public, too, allowing workers to stay home when sick or to care for ill family members to stem the spread of infectious diseases.
But opponents say the measures force new burdens on employers, who should be the ones deciding which benefits are best.
The coronavirus pandemic highlighted gaps in such benefits. At the height of the health crisis, the federal government provided temporary relief for sick workers, but those federal protections ended in 2021.
Fifteen states and the District of Columbia now have laws requiring at least some employers to provide paid sick time, according to the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank based in Washington, D.C. They are largely Democratic-controlled places.
The three sick leave ballot measures up for vote are in Republican-led states. Ballot measures, which are allowed in 24 states, let voters amend state constitutions or enact laws by voting directly on an issue, allowing them to bypass state legislatures. For example, voters ushered in Medicaid expansion in Missouri and Nebraska in 2020 and 2018, respectively, after their legislatures wouldn't pass it.
Still, as Election Day quickly approaches, the three s ...