This election cycle, Missouri, Alaska and Nebraska put paid sick leave on the ballot, and in all three states, voters approved the measures by wide margins. Most voters in those same states also cast their ballots for President-elect Donald Trump. While that may come as a surprise to some, it doesn’t to me.
Voters don’t see strengthening worker protections as a partisan issue. All hardworking Americans want the ability to take a day off from work when they’re sick without losing vital pay.
New Mexico workers are no different. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, our community members urged lawmakers to pass a paid sick leave bill so they wouldn’t have to choose between going to work with a contagious illness and a vital paycheck. Lawmakers listened and passed the Healthy Workplaces Act in 2021, allowing workers to earn one hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
Now lawmakers must listen and pass paid family and medical leave — a vital safety net that 77% of New Mexicans across party lines support, yet 75% of New Mexico workers lack. Paid family and medical leave would allow workers to take up to 12 weeks off to care for a new child, seriously ill family member, or to address their own serious medical issue.
As union president of CWA Local 7076, I can tell you that all of our members want strong protections and access to critical services. We know illness and tragedy do not discriminate by party lines. And all parents, regardless of political affiliation, deserve to take time off to bond with a new child.
As public workers, our union members work hard every day to serve their fellow community members, yet many of them are underpaid and overworked. The state of New Mexico, in particular, has been struggling with high turnover rates, leaving 1 in 4 positions vacant. Paid Family and Medical Leave would not only provide a safety net to workers when they need it most, but offering it could also help the state with job retention. When we asked members in a recent survey about their top workplace concerns and priorities, they listed more paid leave as their fourth highest priority after cost-of-living adjustments, telework options and fair pay.
I have personally spoken with members who needed time off to care for themselves and family members, but had to sacrifice their paychecks to do so. Recently, one member, a 20-plus year employee of the state, left her job because she needed to care for her brother with a disability, but she couldn’t make ends meet with unpaid FMLA. Right now, another member is out on unpaid leave while undergoing lifesaving cancer treatment. She has a Ph.D. and is a valued expert in her field. Yet without access to paid leave, there’s no telling if she’ll return to work for the state long term.
We all need to give or get care at some point in our lives, whether it’s for a spouse, child, parent or ourselves. No one is immune from challenging times. But New Mexico’s elected leaders have the power to ease that difficulty for their constituents by ensuring when those challenging times happen, workers won’t have to worry about paying the bills or putting food on the table.
Paid family and medical leave is not a partisan issue — it’s an issue that touches the lives of all New Mexicans. With broad support from workers across party lines, lawmakers have a mandate to pass it and show we are a state that values our workforce and their families.
My View by Megan Green
Published November 30, 2024
Santa Fe New Mexican