Sick pay doesn't come without a cost
LETTERS
The problem with sick pay is that someone has to pay for it ["Buck Up, Sicko," July 7]. The self-employed are acutely aware that if you miss a day's work, you forfeit a day's income. Those who work for a large organization, where the connection between work and income is obscure, can shift the cost to others.
But unless the tooth fairy is running the place, anyone who takes less than the average sick time is giving money to those who take more than the average. Most of us don't object to that when the beneficiary is truly sick. But all of us know the delicate flower who contracts a mysterious ailment almost every Friday.
Paid time off is a difficult issue for any employer. "Feel good" laws that reward the hypochondriac and the slacker are not the solution.
Arthur O. Armstrong
Manhattan Beach
Dr. [Rajiv] Bhatia of the San Francisco Department of Public Health Department laments the public health impact of employers that do not provide moderate-income workers with paid sick leave ["Public Health Comes into Play When Sick Days Aren't Paid," July 7].
Laws such as the one in San Francisco that require employers to award workers paid sick time equal to 3.3% of hours worked actually harms moderate income workers by reducing their take-home pay. Paid sick leave is not a "free" perk. Rather, it's a way to evenly spread income earned during fewer "working" days over productive and nonproductive (i.e. sick) days.
In other words, if employers are required to pay employees for working 3.3% fewer hours, they will adjust their pay accordingly.
Workers could undoubtedly use more sick days. However, if given the choice, many would prefer the additional pay if they had the option.
One does not have to be an economist to understand that workers are paid to be on the job. When cities force employers to provide paid sick leave, they in essence, also require employers to dock workers' pay accordingly.
Devon M. Herrick, Senior Fellow, National Center for Policy Analysis
Dallas
Dealing with leprosy, working for change
I recently read your article on the stigma of leprosy ["Sadly, Leprosy's Stigma Endures," June 30]. I was concerned about the patient who never came back to the office for treatment or follow-up. I know how important it is to be on a strict treatment plan, having had leprosy myself and enduring over a decade of treatment and emotional trials.
