Seattle Expands Paid Sick Leave For Gig Workers
SEATTLE, WA — Seattle City Council voted to pass new legislation protecting sick time for gig workers, like rideshare drivers or drivers for food delivery apps.
The legislation, Council Bill 119793, was proposed by Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda and passed unanimously Monday. The bill allows gig workers to earn paid sick and safe time based on their average daily pay for each day they've worked for the company since October 1 of last year.
City leaders say, these workers deserve these protections, especially since they've continued working during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Gig workers have been left out of health and safety protections afforded to most working people in Seattle and across the country," said Mosqueda. "But now it is essential that these essential workers have paid sick days so they don’t have to go to work ill during the time of COVID-19."
Under the new legislation, gig workers can use up to three days of paid sick leave before they are required to provide a doctor's note for time off. Gig workers can also accrue up to nine days of unused sick leave and are allowed to keep it through to the next year.
How much they earn with their sick leave will also be recalculated based on their average pay for each month, so that their sick leave pay better reflects the money they'd normally be earning. Companies will also be required to keep track of and inform gig workers on how much paid sick leave they have left.
The council cited several drivers who said these protections have been long-overdue.
“I’ve been home sick with tonsillitis for the last week and a fever came on over the weekend,” Uber driver Zakaria Jarato told council members. “As the sole-provider for a family of five, any illness creates a lot of stress, particularly during this pandemic. Because I don’t receive a single paid sick day from Uber, we have to live off credit cards.”
Now that the bill has passed, it will be enforced by the Office of Labor Standards.
Learn more about the bill on the city's website here.
This article originally appeared on the Seattle Patch
