San Antonio City Council certified today that supporters of a new law to require all private employers in the city to provide paid sick leave to their full time employees have been certified as containing enough signatures to force consideration of the issue, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
They didn't make it with much wiggle room to spare.70,419 valid signatures were certified, and the minimum number of signatures required was 69,650.
That means the City Council has the option of placing the item up for a public vote in the November election, or of simply voting to approve the new law itself.But the issue met plenty of opposition at City Hall.
David Frye of Cox Manufacturing said dictating the relationship between a private employer and its employees is not the proper business of government.
"The key is that market conditions should ultimately decide whether these policies should be added," he said. "Many of those are voluntary, those avenues to take leave."
Company owner Patrick Garcia said he was required to follow mandatory paid sick leave policies under the Obama Administration because his company is a military contractor, and it didn't go well."
My senior managers of 37 years and 30 years, they came to me and said, when this sick leave policy went into effect, we have had a lot of sick people in the plant."
Rey Chavez, who heads the San Antonio Manufacturers Association, said his members oppose mandatory sick leave, although most of them offer sick leave to their full time employees.
"A lot of the businesses within San Antonio, which have established sick leave policies on the books, they cannot afford to do this paid sick leave ordinance," he said.
City Council will hold several hearings on the issue later this month before deciding whether to approve this measure, or place it on the November ballot.