Every person gets sick, and no one should be forced to choose between their job and their health, or their family’s health. But lawmakers in 18 states across the country – the majority of which are in the South – fail to guarantee that workers can earn paid sick days, and at the same time block local governments from setting their own standards for local workers, families and businesses. New analysis from A Better Balance and the National Partnership for Women & Families reveals that nearly 73 million workers live in these paid sick days preemption states – 43 percent of the U.S. labor force – and that Black and Southern workers, as well as workers who live outside of metropolitan areas, are particularly impacted.
This new data finds that:
- More than 71% of workers affected by these state preemption laws live in the South.
- 56% of the Black labor force in the United States lives in one of these 18 states.
- More than half of the non-metropolitan labor force in the country lives in one of these 18 states.
- A total of 23 million parents, 10.3 million young people, and 5.5 million disabled workers are subject to paid sick time preemption laws that prevent their localities from extending this critically important protection.