2 new payments would assist staff receives a commission sick and family go away time |

Click here for updates on this story

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) – Heads of state Tuesday unveiled two bills designed to protect families, businesses and the public in North Carolina.

Parents and grandparents who were at a local park on Tuesday said life was challenging enough, even with paid sick leave and family vacations. And they said all North Carolinians should have these basic rights.

However, according to Asheville Rep. Susan Fisher, nearly 1.6 million working North Carolinians (approximately 10 percent of the state’s population) have no paid sick leave.

“That is 1.6 million people who are being put in a position to take care of their children, their parents or to go without pay, maybe even lose their job because they had to make a choice between caring for a family member or a child to worry about, “said Fisher.

Fisher (D-114) is a co-sponsor of the Healthy Families, Healthy Workplaces / Paid Sick Leave Act, which allows all workers to build up sick time from day one at work and build an hour every 30 hours has worked.

Caylea Jenkins is a member of the Asheville Restaurant Opportunities Center, a group that represents restaurant workers.

Jenkins said she and others in her industry had worked sick before because they were afraid of not being able to pay bills and losing their jobs.

“In the meantime you are there,” said Jenkins. “You’ve touched countless surfaces, countless plates, countless debit and credit cards. Regardless of health and safety standards, a sick person is a sick person.”

The other bill passed Tuesday is the Paid Family Vacation Insurance Act in North Carolina.

For about $ 100 per year or $ 2 per week, companies offer paid medical leave to their employees to care for a family member.

Legislators say that 25 percent of young mothers in North Carolina return to work just two weeks after giving birth, which is difficult for one in two mothers to imagine.

“Having a newborn and getting little sleep, I mean, it costs you so much life,” said Elizabeth Reckinger von Arden. “I couldn’t imagine going back to work soon after, if your mind wasn’t even fully occupied with what’s going on.”

“We have friends who live in Europe,” said Patty Staggs, who was in the park with her granddaughter. “You have six months, or even a year. It’s especially precious to the kids of that age.”

Ana Pardo of the Workers Rights Project said the next step is for the General Assembly to hold a hearing on the bill.

However, Pardo said the paid sick leave bill was introduced in the last seven meetings and has not received a hearing.

A lawmaker who sponsored one of the bills said nine states that have similar plans are actually saving companies money by getting people back to work, reducing the cost of hiring and training new employees.

Please note: this content is subject to a strict local market embargo. If you have the same market as the author of this article, then you are not allowed to use it on any platform.