03/09/2023
March 9, 2023 Labor and Public Employees Committee HB 6668
Public Hearing Testimony of
Danté Bartolomeo
Commissioner
Department of Labor
Labor and Public Employees Committee
March 9, 2023
Good morning, Representative Sanchez, Senator Kushner, Representative Ackert, Senator Sampson, Representative Wilson, Senator Cabrera, and members of the Labor and Public Employees Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to provide you with written testimony regarding H.B. 6668: An Act Modernizing The Paid Sick Days Statutes. My name is Danté Bartolomeo and I am the Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Labor.
Connecticut should be proud that it was the first state in the country to provide paid sick days, with the passage of Public Act 11-52 in 2011. That law requires certain employers with at least 50 employees to provide up to 40 hours of paid sick leave to “service workers” in certain specified occupations, reaching approximately 10% of workers statewide. Unfortunately, Public Act 11-52 was limited in its scope so employees other than service workers, as well as employees working for companies of fewer than 50 employees, are not currently covered by Connecticut’s paid sick days law. The current law also limits the family members for whom an employee can take sick time to care for and does not address pandemic- and remote work-related issues that may arise.
Thank you for the opportunity to provide this written testimony. CTDOL looks forward to working with Governor Lamont and the Labor and Public Employees Committee to modernize Connecticut’s paid sick leave law so that Connecticut’s residents are not forced to make the difficult decision of whether to give up their day’s paycheck – or even their job – when they have an illness, need to care for a family member with an illness, or need care for themselves or a family member due to violence or sexual assault.
Connecticut Department of Labor • www.ct.gov/dol
An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer