Coronavirus: LA County ordinance requires large companies to offer more sick leave
An emergency ordinance is now requiring large businesses in unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County to provide 80 hours of additional paid sick leave for full-time workers who need time off because of coronavirus.
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved an interim emergency ordinance requiring large businesses in unincorporated areas of the county to provide 80 hours of additional paid sick leave for full-time workers who need time off because of coronavirus.
The ordinance applies to companies with more than 500 employees nationally.
Supervisors Janice Hahn and Hilda Solis co-authored the motion recommending the ordinance, which exempts businesses with collective bargaining agreements in place.
The federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act mandates additional sick leave for workers affected by the virus, but does not apply to companies with more than 500 employees.
Solis said that at least 38 companies in unincorporated areas employ that amount of workers, but it was not immediately clear which of those companies would be exempted because of collective bargaining agreements or an existing plan to offer more sick leave.
The board also directed the county's lawyers and chief executive officer to draft another ordinance giving workers laid off in the hospitality and janitorial services industries due to the COVID-19 pandemic a "right of recall'' when business resumes.
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The second ordinance is expected to be voted on the board's May 12 meeting.
"This will provide stability for our hard-working families,'' Solis said.
The COVID-19 death toll in Los Angeles County reached 1,000 as public health officials on Tuesday confirmed an additional 59 deaths across the region. Thirty-six of those people were over the age of 65, 28 of which had underlying health conditions.
Officials also confirmed 597 new confirmed cases, bringing the county's total to 20,976.
City News Service contributed to this report.
