Monday, April 1, 2013


Bill de Blasio rips bill negotiated by Christine Quinn that would mandate paid sick leave for most employees

In a heated preview of what is shaping up to be an issue in the 2013 race for mayor, de Blasio said the compromise that Quinn negotiated on paid sick days did not go far enough.


























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Rivals of Council Speaker Christine Quinn have pounded her over the paid sick days bill she brokered.

Bill de Blasio hammered away at the paid sick days bill brokered by mayoral rival Christine Quinn — and vowed not to relinquish it as an issue on the increasingly contentious campaign trail.
De Blasio, the public advocate, said Saturday the new compromise bill does not go far enough and portrayed Quinn as a tool of big business.
“For three years she blocked a vote on something the people of this city desperately needed — they’ll remember that,” he told a crowd gathered at the Harlem headquarters of the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network.
“People aren’t dumb, they’ll figure out that their interests were not her priority,” he continued. “Her interests were the interests of the business community and that’s been quite apparent.”
RELATED: RIVALS RIP QUINN AT HEARING ON PAID LEAVE
Under the deal, businesses with at least 20 employees must offer five paid sick days a year beginning next April.
The following year, the mandate would extend to companies with at least 15 workers.
Approximately 925,000 of the 1.3 million workers without sick days will be covered by 2015, according to the City Council.
Quinn opposed earlier, more expansive versions of the bill and touted the compromise as proof of her leadership.
RELATED: DE BLASIO TAKES SWIPE AT QUINN FOR NOT PASSING SICK LEAVE BILL
The deal seemed to strip de Blasio of one of his signature attacks on Quinn, the Democratic front-runner for mayor.
But the public advocate, who has positioned himself to Quinn’s left on nearly every issue, would not relent.
“We’re not going to be given crumbs, we’re going to keep fighting until everyone who needs paid sick days gets paid sick days in the City of New York,” he said. “We don’t give up when our movement is only given half a loaf, we keep fighting until we get the whole loaf.”
Sharpton, who has yet to endorse anyone in the mayor’s race, was more measured in his comments about the legislation.
“The bill that they came up with is good and in the right direction, but it doesn’t even go to effect until next year,” said Sharpton.
dslattery@nydailynews.com

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