Thank you to all our VA members who wrote emails!
On Wednesday September 16, the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee rejected House Bill 5116 which would have required all public and private employers to provide paid quarantine leave to their employees under certain circumstances. NFIB’s State Director Nicole Riley lobbied hard against the bill and many of you helped by sending Senators emails when we asked. We are grateful and glad to have a good outcome!
Below are Riley’s comments in a news release reacting to the bill’s demise. She was quoted in the Richmond Times Dispatch and several other media outlets:
“Small businesses are already facing pandemic-related financial burdens and restrictions on their operations, so the last thing they needed is another government mandate that would add costs and reduce their flexibility.
“We are very grateful the members of the Senate Committee realized now is not the time to impose additional mandates on small business, especially when this bill would have added another unnecessary layer of bureaucracy because the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act and Virginia’s new emergency workplace rules already address so many of these issues.”
“Small businesses are facing huge operational challenges right now, but they do care about their employees and want to do all they can to assist those impacted by COVID-19. Each business is different, and they need to figure out their own best solution. Tying their hands behind their back with another one-size-fits-all mandate would have made their economic recovery even more difficult.”
