01/09/2007
NFIB stands firm in opposition of new government mandates
Supporters of expanding the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act are gearing up to pass legislation to increase benefits and lower employee thresholds, a move that would force smaller businesses to comply with the act.
Currently, only companies with 50 or more employees are subject to FMLA, which requires businesses to provide employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for reasons including family illness and maternity leave.
Lowering the employee threshold imposes new mandates on small businesses despite whether the employer can afford to keep a position open pending the return of the employee. Small-business employers want to do what's right, but they also need to keep their businesses running. It's a burden for most small-business owners to keep a job open for even the most valued employee, a significant difference between small and large companies. Larger businesses simply have more resources and can be more flexible.
The law also would interfere with the flexibility that small-business owners offer—a critical factor when competing for employees. A recent NFIB poll revealed that 96 percent of small-business owners provide flexible hours when personal situations arise, regardless of the firm's size. Small business employers can tighten their policies when an employee abuses benefits, or expand them when a condition merits special consideration.
Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, the incoming chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, introduced a bill last year to require companies with at least 15 employees to provide seven paid sick days a year.
Like a similar House bill, paid leave would be required not just when workers are ill, but when family members are sick or simply need to go to the doctor for checkup sand tests. NFIB expects these bills to be introduced in the new Congress as well.
