Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Announces Major Expansion of Paid Sick Leave in New York City

January 17, 2014

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Well, I just want to say how excited I am to be here today. I want to thank all our friends across the street.

[Cheers]

Everyone is here to talk about something we think is going to make a huge impact in the lives of everyday New Yorkers and something that people have been waiting for, so their lives can be a little more secure as so many of our fellow New Yorkers still deal with the effects of a really tough economy.

I want to say, we are blessed to be joined by a lot of great leaders and in a few minutes I'm going to get the formal list of all the elected officials. I want to make sure not to leave anyone out, so that will come in just a few minutes, but I want to thank, up front, Esmeralda Valencia, who just hosted us in her wonderful restaurant.

[Cheers]

I urge all New Yorkers to visit Esmeralda's –

[Cheers]

– and I want to thank Leonardo Hernandez, who you’re going to hear from in a moment, who works in a car wash in Queens – he's going to tell us his story.

I am so thrilled today to be standing next to Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito –

[Cheers]

– and I'm so excited by the opportunity to work together for progressive change in this city.
I want to thank someone who I had the honor of being at her swearing-in a few days ago, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, who we all owe –

[Cheers]

– we all owe such a debt of gratitude for the leadership she has shown on the [inaudible] issue. Let's give her the applause she deserves.

[Applause]
[Cheers]

I want to thank Council Member Dan Garodnick – who is here at this moment or coming? I want to thank him because the amendments he offered last year were also a crucial part of the process that led to step one. Today we're going to talk about the crucially necessary step two in this process, to make sure that paid sick days reach all New Yorkers who need them. I also want to thank the Better Balance Coalition and the Paid Sick Days Coalition – extraordinary activists and leaders.

[Cheers]

And let me tell you, it may have taken a while, brothers and sisters, but you never gave up the fight, and it was an honor to work side-by-side with you.

Now, Melissa and I just spent – we just had a few moments with Esmeralda and Leonardo – and they're really powerful stories. And it was so important for us to hear from them. It really makes the case why this is so important for every New Yorker.

These are two hardworking New Yorkers – one, again, owns this restaurant, one is a car wash worker. They both struggled and worked hard their whole time here in this country and this city to make a better life for themselves and their families. And both are fundamentally committed to making sure that New Yorkers who don't have paid sick leave get it, because they know, each from their own perspective, what it means for everyday people's lives. And we're here, all of us, and the mission we are all a part of is to make the lives of everyday people better, to ease the burdens of hardworking New Yorkers – and that is how we create one city. I've talked many times about the tale of two cities we face.

[Subway passes overhead]

Thank you. Yeah, I like the way you jumped in the minute the train came over, very good.
We talked a lot about the tale of two cities. Our goal is to create one city, where everyone can rise together, and this is one of the steps we have to take to make that possible.

And the time to act is now. So many people in this city are struggling to make ends meet. The numbers are sobering. We've talked about the fact that nearly half of New Yorkers – 44 percent of New Yorkers – at or near the poverty level. More than a quarter of the families in our homeless shelter system have at least one working parent. Think about that. Folks who are hard working or doing the right thing can't afford a place to live, end up in shelters – that's how tough it is for some people to make it in this town.

Many families already close to the edge economically, living on the brink, are just one illness away from losing that paycheck that they can't afford to go without. Even for a lot of families, losing one day's pay could set them back horribly, but losing a week or two weeks pay would be devastating for so many people who literally have no savings at all. So, our job is to recognize that in a city as great as New York, it's not acceptable that so many people are living with that kind of insecurity, not acceptable that so many of our fellow New Yorkers are living on the edge economically when there's something we can do to ease their burden.

We know New Yorkers are compassionate. We know that we are a compassionate city, devoted to all of our fellow citizens, and today we have the ability to do something profound to improve the lives of New Yorkers right away. This progressive agenda I've talked about over the last year – and I know that speaker Mark-Viverito shares deeply, something she's committed her whole life to – this agenda starts now. Talked about on it inauguration day – I said we would work together to put it into action immediately – and today we're taking a crucial step forward.

I'm here to announce today with my colleagues that we're immediately acting on a dramatic expansion – a dramatic expansion of the paid sick leave law for the city of New York.

[Cheers]

Legislation that we are putting forward with the City Council will expand the paid sick leave bill to cover an additional half-million New Yorkers – half-million people that now do not have the security that guarantees a legal right to paid sick days. It's time they had that right.

And we're accelerating the implementation of the existing law, and of course the coverage for all New Yorkers not yet covered – we're accelerating it to this year in all cases. People who need paid sick leave need it this year, in 2014 – not some day in the future – this year.

[Applause]

I’m now going to humbly use my Spanish language skills, which is a lot harder when I'm standing next to a native Spanish speaker, but that's okay. That's all right, I'll be bold.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

Now, this means, again, that more than 500,000 New Yorkers, additional, will have the right to paid sick leave – and that right cannot be taken away. That is the power of this law. More people will be covered, they will be covered more quickly, and the right cannot be taken away.

And under this legislation, starting this April, the lives of over a half-million New Yorkers will be immeasurably better. Their lives will be more secure. Families will be stronger and more stable because they will have paid sick leave coverage. I want to thank Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and all the council members who are here – and we're going to acknowledge all of them in a moment. I want to thank them because they’re ready to move forward.

By the way, for years they've been ready to move forward. And I have had the honor of working with so many of the council members in the previous council, who worked for three long years to get action. I've talked to so many of the incoming members who share that passion.

This is a group of leaders ready to act, and we're going to show the people of this city that government can work on their behalf and do so swiftly.

This legislation, again, will build on the law passed last year and with these changes we will have one of the strongest paid sick leave laws in the nation.

People working at businesses with five or more employees will be covered and protected, instead of the fifteen-employee threshold of the current law. That right there will cover an additional 355,000 New Yorkers.

We will eliminate the phase-in period. All workers included in the bill will have immediate coverage. This means that 140,000 people who would have waited until 2015 will be covered in 2014.

We're going to remove the exemptions for certain economic sectors. That means that an additional 76,000 workers will be covered.

We're going to drop the language that created an economic trigger that said if the economy experienced certain factors that somehow this law would not take place. We're taking that language out, because in a troubled economy, people need paid sick leave even more to protect their families.

[Cheers]

And we're going to recognize something that everyone here knows – that families come in every shape and size, that families come in every type, that many children are cared for by grandparents, by aunts and uncles, by siblings, and that that paid sick leave right must apply regardless of who is caring for children who are sick and need help.

So let's be very clear – this City Hall is going to be on the side of working families all over this city. We're going to work hard and we're going to work together, both sides of City Hall, to make sure that this will be one city where everyone rises together.

With that, it is my honor to introduce, the Speaker of the New York City Council, Melissa Mark-Viverito.

[Applause]
[Cheers]

[…]

Mayor: Now, we have a veritable all-star team of City Council members – I told the Speaker I think she has a quorum here on the street in Brooklyn.

Let me acknowledge – it’s just an extraordinary cross-section of leaders of this city here, so let me acknowledge them all now. I want to thank our shy and retiring public advocate, Tish James.

[Cheers]

I just keep telling Tish I hope she’ll come out of her shell at some point. I want to thank our comptroller, Scott Stringer.

[Cheers]

Again, thank you to current Borough President Gale Brewer and former Mr. – he’s still Mr. Brooklyn – the former borough president Marty Markowitz – thank you so much for being here.

[Cheers]

They will never take Mr. Brooklyn away.

[Laughter]

We’re going to make that law too. That’s the next law we’re going to work on.

I want to thank our former comptroller, Liz Holtzman. I want to thank our members of Congress who are here – Nydia Velasquez, Carolyn Maloney, and I think Jerry Nadler’s here – all right!

I want thank from the state senate Senator Martin [inaudible] and Senator Malcolm Smith.

I want thank from the Assembly David Weprin, Felix Ortiz, Brian Kavanagh, [inaudible] Jacobs, Nily Rozic, and Maritza Davila – thank you all.

[Cheers]

Now, I want you to hear from Leonardo Hernandez. His story is powerful. He works in a car wash in Queens. He works very, very hard. And as he told Melissa and I in our gathering a moment ago that he literally cannot take a day off because he simply can’t afford it. He and his family cannot afford to lose a single day’s pay. So no matter how sick he’s been, no matter how cold it is, he literally doesn’t have the right to take a day off – and we want you to here Leonardo’s story.

[…]

Now, I’d like to bring forward Esmeralda Valencia. And I want to say – she is a powerful example to us all. She’s a little cold, but she’s hanging in there. She is a powerful example to us all, because she made the decision to give her employees paid sick days because she thought it would make her workplace better for everyone – for her customers, for her employees – and the proof is in the experience that she’s had. Let’s hear from Esmeralda.

[…]

So, you know, Esmeralda told us that she started this business almost ten years ago, and she made the decision to respect her employees. If they got sick, she made sure they had the time to get well. Or if their families needed help, she made sure they had the time to take care of their families. She said the result is that she’s had incredibly loyal and hardworking employees. A couple of her employees have actually been with her the whole ten years, and have stuck with it because this is a workplace that respects them, and they want to respect their workplace and the person who owns the workplace.

And there’s a really great example in that – the people who work here are hardworking, they’re focused, they’re loyal, because when they [inaudible] moments of need, they had the opportunity to take care of their families.

And that also, as she pointed out – she said it with a common sense that I think all New Yorkers would appreciate – I said, “Tell me some of the good things about the fact that your employees have paid sick days.” And she said, “Look around, it’s a restaurant – we have to think about our customers – they have to be healthy – we can’t have someone here sick that might make our customers sick.” So her customers know she’s looking out for them. Her employees know she’s looking out for them. And that’s why this business is working so well for everyone.

Let’s give Esmeralda a round of applause.

[Applause]
[Cheers]

I know Tish James may have to think long and hard about speaking publicly. It may be kind of halting, but I know she can overcome this shyness issue, and we have to help her and support here. Tish? Tish, we believe in you. Public Advocate Tish James.

[…]

Mayor: All right. With that, you have heard our resolute focus on passing this legislation.

I want to thank all the members of the City Council who are here, and I want to thank the Speaker – I want to thank all of them for the common cause we feel.

Let’s take questions on this topic first, and then we can take off-topic questions. On this topic, Sally?

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Louder, Sally.

Question: [inaudible]

City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito: This is a bill that will be introduced, and it is at the request of the mayor, and it will complete vetting through the council process, committee process, we'll get a hearing. So once the assignments are made, that appropriate committee will be designated. 

[Inaudible]

[Laughter]

Mayor: Tell 'em like it is, girl.

Question: What is your response to some business owners, especially some small business owners, who say that the paid sick leave legislation will hurt their ability to run their operations?

Mayor: We have examples from all over the country that prove that paid sick leave legislation works for everyone. In fact, it improves productivity. It improves the retention of workers.

[Subway passes overhead]

Mayor: Again, it improves productivity, improves the retention of workers, it creates a better environment for customers – there are so many advantages. And what we've seen in Seattle and San Francisco and Connecticut and the District of Columbia, more recently, Philadelphia – all over the country you see this consistent movement where states and localities are moving this direction because it's been proven to work. Gale Brewer mentioned it's also good in terms of the healthcare costs that are such a big issue in our society, because people have the opportunity to get well rather than end up in the emergency room or end up in a hospital. So I think the track record is very favorable. 

On this topic?

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Yes. DCA is the enforcement agency. There's language to make sure that is – if enforcement requires help from other agencies that we can do that, but DCA will be the lead.

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Before?

Question: Before, yeah.

Mayor: Well, I will start, and the Speaker, obviously, is the expert. I think there's tremendous consensus – again, this is a piece of legislation that had – exactly, this is a – basically the original legislation that for three years had a supermajority. And if you talk to the incoming members, they're very enthusiastic about this. So I think we can move on a very tight timeline, but let the Speaker talk about the specifics. 

Speaker Mark-Viverito: As indicated in our discourse, you know, this is not a new bill. This is a bill that had been drafted, had been worked on many years ago, so there's already something to start off and work with. So as soon as we can introduce it, we will, and it will go through the hearing process, and follow that timeline.

Mayor: Let me just clarify. Gale is an expert on this bill. April 1 – for one segment of those covered by the existing laws, April 1 would be the day when it takes effect. Others, again, would not feel the effect until 2015. What we all aim to do is to put all the different groups of people covered, including the over half-million who will now be covered who were not before, on that April 1, 2014 timeline. So if the legislative process moves as quickly as we believe it will, all of those New Yorkers will be covered by April 1 of this year. Marcia.

Question: [inaudible]? And what does this mean economically, in terms of the infusion of capital into the economy, as people will have this money to spend?

Mayor: Well, I know, in terms of employees, we've laid out the difference. I don't honestly know in terms of number of businesses – I don't know if my colleagues know that, or else we'll get it to you. But again, we believe this makes for a healthier economy all around. You’ll see increased productivity. You'll see increased job retention.

[Subway passes overhead]

Mayor: And, to your question, people will have consistent income, which means they’ll be able to spend it. They won’t have those economic dislocations. 

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Yeah, we’ll have to get you that. But this is less about that point than it is about protecting family economies, protecting the stability and security of family economies.

On this topic – yes, Rich.

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: You don’t look cold at all, Rich. I just wanted to note that.

Question: [inaudible] produce [inaudible]?

Mayor: Three – so, three days or more. Three days or more. So the first two days no, but from the third day on you have to produce documentation. 

Question: [inaudible] five, six days per year?

Mayor: Five every year. [inaudible]. Yep. In the year. Up to five in the year. 

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: This is based on all the research that was done around the original legislation. So again, our team can get you the backup documentation but these are numbers that have been pretty consistently recognized over the three, almost now four, years that this issue has been front and center.

Yes –

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: On this topic.

Question: [inaudible]

Speaker Mark-Viverito: There was no deal struck. This is a conversation that has been going on for many years. [inaudible] bringing back the expansion of this bill to its original form. It was briefly mentioned in Democratic caucus earlier this week. The conversation that has been emerging around the issue – possibly bringing this bill back. It is being introduced at the request of the mayor. It will be introduced by the Council. It will be vetted at a Council committee hearing. It will get a hearing. There will be debate. There will be dialogue. So it’s an extremely transparent process. And again, there is no deal that’s been struck. It’s a conversation. We are looking forward to having the conversation, which was supported by a vast majority of existing council members and also has expressed a lot of consideration and support by the council members coming into the Council. So that’s the way that it happened and it transpired. 

Mayor: Okay, we’re going to say – where’s Phil Walzak to decide – are we on this topic or new topic? New topics – this or any topic, let me say it better. Right down the middle.

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Well, we think that they’re the right agency to handle this. And we’ll certainly make sure they have the capacity to do it.

Yes–

Question: [inaudible] Reverend Al Sharpton [inaudible] chief of staff to your wife. I’m wondering if a chief of staff [inaudible] for the First Lady? Can you tell us at all about [inaudible] what her role is going to be in the administration and plans to hire people to support her?

Mayor: I would like to give you an A for effort for asking variations on this question several times. We, as with every other announcement about personnel, staffing, roles that people will play, will have something to say when it’s formulated and when we’re ready. 

Question: Back to [inaudible] working thirty, thirty-five, forty hours?

Mayor: I’m going to let Gale go into the fine point, and with Melissa – one just point – so, it’s employees of companies with five employees or more. Take it away.

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer: What you do is you accrue it. In other words, you get to so many hours depending on how many hours you work and when you begin. It doesn’t happen immediately. So there’s an accrual process.

Question: [inaudible] thirty hours or more?

Borough President Brewer: Yes, thirty hours – you have to work thirty hours or more. But if you’re a part time employee, it takes a while to accrue, so you don’t actually get five sick days immediately. We can give you the specifics afterwards if you want. 

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Again, I’ll start, and if the Speaker or the Borough President have anything to add, we welcome it. The facts on the ground are what matter here.

[Subway passes overhead]

Mayor: We have – cities and states around the country have now been doing this over the last several years. And again, consistently, the reports back, the research is that it does not fundamentally change the behavior of folks who work. If anything, it improves the behavior. So I think that small business owners like Esmeralda will quickly recognize that this is going to be a good thing for the business – a good thing for the customers, a good thing for the people who work in the business, a good thing for our society. The productivity impact of having your workers healthy will keep your workforce stable. It’s going to be, I think, a very big, positive impact. And look, folks who own small businesses are very smart about seeing what works, and they’re going to see this works.

Phil Walzak: One or two more, please.

Mayor: One or two more.

Question: [inaudible] a little bit on the past discussions [inaudible] concerned or at least want to be part of the conversation?

Mayor: I’ll start and my colleagues can jump in. Look, we – this is, again, the fourth year of a conversation. I just want to emphasize – and I really hope all my colleagues in the media will note that fact – a lot of us have been engaged in this discussion with business owners over one, two, three, four years. And I think there’s a lot of small business owners who understand why this is a good idea. But of course, as the Speaker said, there’s going to be a deliberative process. There’s going to be an opportunity to hear the voices of small business. I, in the last year in particular, have talked about some of the policies this city in the last years that hurt small businesses that need to change, and that’s a separate topic, but I assure you we’re going to move very aggressively on that front as well to create more fairness for small business. So yes, small business will be at the table, but this dialogue that’s proceeded over the last three or four years has convinced a lot of us that this is a measure that’s good for communities and good for small business. One more – of you – I’m sorry – please.

Speaker Mark-Viverito: No, I think just to confirm – you know, there are – again, this is an introduction of a prior bill that had been thoroughly developed. So clearly we understand that there are going to be those who are going to argue against it – it’s been heard before. We still are going to have a process in which there will be hearings and there will be debates. Those voices can be heard once again and that opportunity will be provided. But it’s not a new conversation. It’s not a new premise. This has been, again, discussed over four or five years [inaudible].

Question: [inaudible]

Speaker Mark-Viverito: Negotiations have been [inaudible] prior, okay? So we are going to have a conversation of the bill as presently as it has been introduced – and it will be introduced – and we will take it from there.

Question: Mr. Mayor, [inaudible] water [inaudible]?

Mayor: It’s very painful. I mean – again, I think every parent here, everyone who’s got a young person in their life, this is – you know – it’s just a horrible, sad story. And, you know, there was an extraordinary mobilization all over this city by community members, by the NYPD looking for this young man with no success. And I can only imagine what his parents have gone through. What we know today is that the remains have arrived at the medical examiner’s office. They will be analyzed. We don’t know exactly when we’re going to have an answer, but my heart goes out to the family. Thank you, everyone.