Paid Sick Leave Getting Off the Ground in Tacoma

by Marilyn P. Watkins, Policy Director, Economic Opportunity Institute
 
Healthy Tacoma’s Paid Sick Days campaign got off to a lively start last night. A fired-up crowd of more than 150 cheered as City Councilmember Anders Ibsen promised to introduce legislation in the next couple weeks.  A former restaurant worker, a small business owner, a neonatal nurse, and state legislator Laurie Jinkins shared their perspectives on why all workers should be able to earn paid sick time.
 
The Healthy Tacoma proposal would allow all workers in the city to earn between 5 and 13 paid sick days per year. An estimated 40,000 people working in the city don’t earn paid sick leave now.
Initial media coverage has been great:

King 5 TV

Tacoma group pushes paid sick leave ordinance KPLU | 5.30.2013

Paid Sick Days Next for Tacoma? WA News Service | 5.30.2013

Group seeks sick leave for all who work in Tacoma Tacoma News Tribune | 5.30.2013

The Stand: Campaigns begin for fast-food employees, all Tacoma workers

For more info, see http://healthytacoma.net/. And be sure to like the campaign on Facebook.