Employers fear they would eventually have to contribute to fund.
A bill that would create a family and medical leave insurance program in Colorado has small business owners worried.
Under the plan, House Bill 1258, employees would pay a percentage of their salary into a fund that would provide partially paid leave to sick workers or workers caring for a new child or sick family member. A new Division of Family and Medical Leave Insurance would have to be created in the state’s Department of Labor and Employment to operate the program.
The law makes no exceptions for small businesses. And while the plan doesn’t call for employers to contribute to the fund, small business owners fear it’s just a matter of time.
“There’s no way this fund is going to be able to support the amount of leave that would be taken under the guidelines,” says Tony Gagliardi, NFIB/Colorado state director.
The bill does say that if the fund were to fall short, a “solvency surcharge” could be assessed, but doesn’t specify who would pay it.
A similar plan proposed last year was opposed by NFIB and never made it out of the Senate. Under that plan, the program was estimated to be $64 million in debt in its third year, reported the Colorado Springs Gazette.
Critics also point out that low-wage employees might not be able to afford to contribute to the fund. “This is a tax on employees,” Gagliardi says. “They either have to pay or they have to opt out.”
How would the family and medical leave insurance program affect your small business? Tell us in the comments section below.
