Senate Republicans Block Quick Passage of Sick Leave Bill for Virus Victims

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 25: Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee member Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) listens to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar testify during a hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill February 25, 2020 in Washington, DC. Even as it has slashed its 2021 budget proposal for the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health and other crucial programs, HHS is asking Congress for a $2.5 billion emergency supplemental to prepare for the growing global threat of coronavirus. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Senate Democrats tried to push through an emergency paid sick leave bill for workers infected by the Covid-19 coronavirus on Wednesday.

Republicans blocked it.

Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) tried to get unanimous consent on the measure, the Huffington Post reports, “but an objection from Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) prevented the bill from bypassing the Republican-controlled health committee.”

The bill would guarantee workers 14 days of paid sick leave in the event of public health emergencies.

Alexander said paid sick leave is a “good idea” — but he’s more concerned about putting “a big new expensive federal mandate on employers.”

Senator Lamar Alexander (R) blocks quick passage of paid sick leave bill – causing it to fail:

“The idea of paid sick leave is a good idea but if Washington, D.C. thinks it's a good idea Washington, D.C. should pay for it."
pic.twitter.com/90DRVfimMu
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) March 11, 2020

Murray, noting that Washington, her home state, has been especially hard-hit by the virus, said that the “primary goal” should be “slowing the spread of the virus in areas where there are outbreaks, so areas where it hasn’t hit so hard yet have time to prepare.”

“One of the best ways we can do this is by allowing workers who feel sick — or who need to stay home with a child whose school is closed — to do so without losing a paycheck or a job,” she added, according to The Hill.

Though stalled for the time being, the bill isn’t dead. Democrats can try to attach the measure to another virus-related package.

Senate Republicans block emergency paid sick leave. They'll happily give $2,000,000,000,000 in tax cuts to corporations and the wealthy, but when it comes to the health of average Americans it's survival of the fittest.https://t.co/qFD6gefOLE
— Robert Reich (@RBReich) March 11, 2020

Nearly three-quarters of American private sector workers already get paid sick leave, despite the lack of a federal mandate.

The rest — about 27% of U.S. workers — are mostly in low-wage fast-food, retail and other service jobs. They are the ones who really need federally required sick leave.

“Polling shows that the idea of a sick leave mandate tends to be extremely popular, with even a strong majority of Republican voters supporting it,” HuffPost says.

Meanwhile, President Trump and his administration are pressing ahead with emergency help for corporations impacted by the coronavirus outbreak — especially hotels and resorts (like Trump’s), airlines and cruise lines, the Washington Post reports. Despite appearances, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin insisted it’s not a “bailout.”

The White House has also discussed low- or no-interest loans for oil and gas producers hit by falling prices due to reduced fuel demands worldwide.