FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

HARTFORD, CT (February 22, 2024) – The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business advocacy association, released the following statement by State Director Andy Markowski in response to today’s hearing in the state legislature’s Labor & Public Employees Committee on three costly employer-paid leave proposals (Senate Bill 7, Senate Bill 12, and House Bill 5166).

“Today’s hearing made plain that some lawmakers in Hartford want to add to the costs and administrative burdens by mandated employer-paid sick leave on Connecticut’s small businesses,” said Andy Markowski, NFIB State Director in Connecticut. “Expanding mandated employer paid sick leave will add considerable costs to the state’s already overburdened small businesses during an onerous time for Connecticut’s Main Street economy. These bills would expand Connecticut’s mandated employer-paid sick leave laws to all small businesses regardless of size or industry and expand the circumstances and relationships for which employees can take paid leave, among other significant changes.”

“Connecticut’s small business owners face rising costs and labor shortages, all while still recovering from the pandemic. Now is not the time to impose yet another mandate that will take away their flexibility as an employer in a difficult economic environment,” continued Markowski. “Small businesses need reasonable and predictable employment laws so they can plan, grow, and create new jobs.”

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For 80 years, NFIB has been advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and member-driven. Since our founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses, and remains so today. For more information, please visit nfib.com.