State legislators made Connecticut

State legislators made Connecticut the first state in the nation to mandate sick leave for hundreds of thousands of service workers earlier this month. Many residents, legislators and business owners are not happy about it.

The House and the Senate narrowly approved a bill on June 4 that applies to businesses with 50 or more employees, guaranteeing those employees an hour of paid sick time for every 40 hours they work. Despite its passage, however, a number of local lawmakers and residents believe it will negatively affect the state's struggling economy.

"I wouldn't say it's somewhat negative, I would say it's very negative," said State Sen. Rob Kane, R-Watertown. "We can't have a one-size-fits-all approach to these things. Small business, all business really, has been hurting since 2008. We're in probably the worst economic time since the Great Depression. For us to put our thumb down and press down on business doesn't make sense. We should be doing the opposite. We should be giving them incentives."

Kane, of the 32nd District, said the bill will inhibit job growth in Connecticut because it needlessly burdens small businesses, which are already under economic strain. The 50-employee cutoff, Kane imagines, will cause businesses to reduce their payrolls and "lay people off rather than add people on" so as to avoid the paid sick time requirements that come with having more employees.

"I couldn't give you a number on how many businesses [in the Danbury area] would be affected," said Director of the Danbury Chamber of Commerce Steven Bull. "But say you're at 49 employees and you're thinking of hiring your 50th. You're not going to do it, now, because you'll incur these types of mandates."