New York City Council members are expected to introduce a bill Wednesday that would allow workers to use paid sick leave to care for pets.
The bill, introduced by City Councilman Sean Abreu, a Manhattan Democrat, would amend the Paid Sick Leave Act to extend the paid sick leave employees can take to care for themselves and their families to both household pets and service animals. It also makes it possible to use it. .
Abreu said the bill is intended to help address the city’s mental health crisis. “I think one of the easiest ways to support mental health is to encourage pet ownership,” Abreu said, adding, “Keeping our pets healthy keeps us healthy.” Ta.
He pointed to research showing that owning a pet can reduce cortisol, a stress-related hormone. For example, owning a dog can also force people to be physically active, which can have a positive impact on depression and social isolation, he said.
The legislation comes at a time when about two-thirds of U.S. households report owning at least one pet, according to the American Pet Products Association, an industry group. The group says Americans spent $147 billion on their pets in 2023, including veterinary care and over-the-counter medications.
Kathryn Wilde, president of the New York City Partnership, an influential business group, expressed concern about the potential costs to employers of expanding paid sick leave coverage. “These benefits cost money, but it’s another thing if the employee is sick and can’t come to work. It’s another thing if it’s a discretionary activity,” she said. “The concern is that this will ultimately create a pattern that will increase the cost of living and doing business in New York as costs are passed on to consumers.”
Few places have laws like the one Mr. Abreu has introduced. In Emeryville, California, employees can use paid sick leave to care for guide, signal, or service dogs owned by employees or their families. Some employers, including a marketing company in Minneapolis and a data company in New York, have voluntarily adjusted their policies to provide paid time off to employees who recently brought home a new pet. The perk has grown in popularity amid the pandemic-induced animal adoption boom.
But for most pet owners, the choice comes down to the employer’s sensibilities.
“If I were to say to my boss, “I have to take Tuesday off because I have to take Waffle to the vet,” I don’t know what kind of reaction I’d get from my employer.”Abreu on the bill said Allie Taylor, president of Voters for Animal Rights, a nonprofit group that worked with his office.
City law currently guarantees employees at businesses with 100 or more employees up to 56 hours of paid leave per year for illness or injury to themselves or a family member, while employees at small businesses receive up to 56 hours of paid leave per year. You are entitled to 40 hours of paid vacation.
The revised law covers animals legally kept as service animals or companions for employees (it does not include a list of species).
Inimai Chettiar, president of A Better Balance, an advocacy group that helped lead the effort to pass New York City’s paid sick leave law, said her organization would be happy for the city to expand the law as it has in the past. He said he would keep an eye on it.
“From our perspective, New York City and New York State have been leaders in paid sick leave for many years,” she said, noting that the state provides more money for workers who need time off because of their health conditions. He added that it would also be desirable to reform temporary disability insurance.
Wilde said that while she has many pets and is a “pet-friendly person,” “at some point you have to realize the limits of what the government can or should mandate.” Ta.
Taylor, who owns five cats, said the bill is also a small way to make it easier for people to keep pets at home and could help alleviate overcrowding at the city’s animal shelters. said.
Public shelters run by the nonprofit Animal Rescue Center are overwhelmed, in part because soaring veterinary costs are discouraging some people from adopting pets. The shelter, which opened in Queens in July, was already at more than 210 percent capacity in August.
Abreu, who owns two cats, Rocky and Nina, said he is hopeful the bill will pass, saying there are city council members who love pets and are committed to tackling the city’s mental health crisis. He said he was holding a
