Paid Sick Leave in Milwaukee

On election day voters in the City of Milwaukee will be asked if private businesses should be mandated to pay sick leave to its employees. The proposal grants up to 9 days of sick leave to full time employees and also grants sick leave to part time and seasonal employees. I live in Oak Creek so I will not have a vote on this matter.

My business is based in the City of Milwaukee and I will be employing seasonal employees through tax season and also employ part time help. I have a vested interest in this topic.

I don't see this law as something that will be a real difference maker in my business because it is not labor intensive at this point but it's not hard to see who a requirement like this may hurt.

I see this provision as being a killer to a business that is starting out that is labor intensive. As anyone who has started a business knows the cash flow in the first few years of the business can be extraordinarily tight. These businesses must scratch by until they can mature into a business that has some breathing room and can offer more fringe benefits to their employees such as paid vacation, healthcare and sick pay. Many will do this in due course because they will have the means to do so and they will need to compete to retain their employees and grow their business.

That said, adding a cost like this could be very detrimental to many businesses who are in their infancy. I don't know that it's enough to put them out of business, but I believe it's an added stress that they do not need. For a full time employee the law would have the impact of adding 3.8% to their benefits. It doesn't sound like much, but many new businesses need every dollar they can get.

It is important that we grow the job base in Milwaukee and I can't see mandating sick pay as being a positive step in this direction when many businesses are portable and can choose to locate just outside of the City.