It’s A ‘No’ Vote For Guaranteed Paid Sick Leave In Portland

Last night as I was watching the Boston sports trifecta, I checked Twitter and saw a tweet from NewsCenter Maine's Cameron O'Brien who was at Portland City Hall for the Guaranteed Paid Sick Leave Vote.

The City Council voted no to guaranteed paid sick leave for employees in Portland by a vote of 5 to 4.

The proposal would have allowed workers in Portland, whether they were part time, seasonal, or full time, an hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours, or one week of sick time. Seems like a good idea to me, apparently employers who didn't like the idea, including small business owners, were worried about cost, saying it may could affect already existing benefit packages. Would it really be that much of a hassle to change up the benefit packages?  Apparently it would infringe on employees’ ability to use existing paid time off hours as they see fit, according to an article on MainePublic.org. I'm sure employers would be able to figure it all out.

Anyway, the Bruins won and have advanced to the Eastern Conference round on their way to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Celtics didn't look so hot last night, and the Red Sox, well, let's just say they've got some work to do too.