Sampson Opposes Controversial Anti-Business Legislation

by admin
April 26th, 2011


HARTFORD — State Rep. Rob Sampson in a Judiciary Committee meeting today opposed controversial anti-business legislation that would make Connecticut the first state in the nation to require private sector employers to provide paid sick leave to their employees. S.B. 913, An Act Mandating Employers Provide Paid Sick Leave to Employees, would require employers with 50 or more employees to provide paid sick leave to certain staffers for either their illnesses or those of a child, parent or spouse—or to deal with issues related to family violence or sexual assault. It would apply to part-time and full-time employees. The proposal, which has been shot down repeatedly through strong opposition from the business community, made it through the committee by a 21-15 vote. Sampson said the bill represents yet another government mandate that will costs businesses money—an edict that would actually hurt working families by increasing the operating costs of small businesses that support them. What’s more, this proposal would make a business owner with 49 employees think twice about taking on another employee and the increased cost of doing business at the 50-employee threshold. “People who start and operate businesses, particularly in this state’s hostile tax and regulatory climate, take a tremendous risk as they try to provide for themselves and their families,” Sampson said. “When they hire someone, it signals an agreement between that employee and the employer. So, in many cases it’s a real overreach when government steps in and starts telling businesses what they need to do. That’s the case today—government, in my opinion, is overstepping its bounds.” Sampson said the paid sick leave proposal runs counter to Gov. Dannel Malloy’s repeated claim that Connecticut’s reputation as a state that’s unfriendly to business is in the rearview mirror. “How can this state possibly be ‘open for business,’ as the governor claims, if the legislature continues to consider bills like this that employers consider detrimental to their ability to hire?” Sampson asked. “Even the very discussion of this proposal sends a poor message to employers thinking about moving here or those wondering whether they have a future in this state,” he said.

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  1. Katheryn Brown says:
    May 23, 2011 at 10:47 pm

    Thank You Rep Sampson, the state must stay out of our employee/employer agreements.

    Restoring state government to its lawful limits will put us back on track to having more opportunities for employment in this state.

    Reply

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