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Legislative Alert: LD 1665 #2

LEGISLATIVE ALERT on L.D. 1665, “An Act to Prevent the Spread of H1N1” MANDATORY PAID LEAVE
...thank you to the Maine State Chamber for updated information
...Legislative Alert #1 regarding L.D. 1665 is posted at http://www.techmaine.com/LD1665

It has been month since the public hearing on L.D. 1665, “An Act to Prevent the Spread of H1N1”, the legislation submitted by Senate President Elizabeth Mitchell (D-Kennebec) that would mandate all Maine businesses provide all employees some portion of paid sick time.  Thank you for all of your assistance in contacting legislators to urge them to oppose the bill.  HOWEVER, this bill still remains in play!  Despite the considerable passage of time, the bill has not been scheduled for a work session by the Joint Standing Committee on Labor. 

In recent days, we have heard rumors that some proponents of L.D. 1665, are trying to rally support for an “amended” version of this bill by proposing to “exempt” certain segments of the business community either by industry type, size of businesses etc. Without question, the proponents of the bill are, and will continue to try and gather legislative support by mitigate its impact on some business. There are two facts that cannot be amended or exempted away from L.D. 1665, and why TechMaine, the Maine State Chamber, and all Maine businesses should remain opposed to this bill:

  • First:  An amended L.D. 1665 will result in new fixed costs that will increase the affected employers bottom line cost of doing business.
  • Second: Maine will be the ONLY state in the country to mandate this requirement on our business.  This will make us less competitive for new jobs or opportunities for our citizens.

DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THESE TACTICS. Any proposal that attempts to amend away the many problems contained in L.D. 1665 only shifts the burden onto another segment of the business community. While exempting certain businesses, for now, may entice some legislator to consider voting for the proposal, if you think you are “safe”, think again.  Make no mistake; just because you may find your business exempted should this bill pass this session, you can fully expect the proponents of this bill will come back in the near future to expand the scope of this mandate onto all Maine businesses. 

We encourage you to contact your legislators and let them know YOU ARE OPPOSED TO THIS BILL IN ANY FORM! 

Say NO to L.D. 1665 in any form!