A recent report from the Chicago Tribune said that the recommendation of the Working Families Task Force is for Chicago employers to offer workers at least five paid sick leaves per year.
This task force was created after a non-binding referendum in February 2015, wherein voters have supported the granting of paid sick leaves for workers.
The task force referred to an analysis that discovered that offering paid sick days would add from 0.7 to 1.5 percent in wage costs for a majority of employers, depending on their size and usage.
This report of the task force was released on Sunday as more cities adopt laws regarding earned sick leaves that particularly affect low-wage earners. About 80 percent of these workers are not receiving paid sick leaves and most cannot afford to lose a paycheck.
"It is unacceptable that more than 200,000 workers in Chicago cannot take a sick day without worrying about losing their job or being unable to pay their bills," stated Mayor Rahm Emanuel when he announced the recommendations.
"This task force report provides the city with a road map for ensuring that our working families receive this important protection," Emanuel added.
The task force was convened last summer, and was tasked to study paid sick leave, paid family and medical leave policies, scheduling and predictability. Its goal is to address the growing concerns regarding the juggling of family responsibilities and work.
But employers are wary about the adoption of the task force's recommendations. Rob Karr, CEO of Illinois Retail Merchants Association said that businesses in Chicago are already at their tipping points.
According to Karr, the proposals made by the task force will "only exacerbate the problems facing employees looking for more hours and higher wages."
There is also the threat to small businesses coming from the nation-wide adoption of the $15 minimum wage law.
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