'A literal gut punch': Missouri workers devastated by Republican repeal of paid sick leave [View all]

[Demovictory9]

Red states voters have no power..they pass laws supporting workers, abortion rights, voting rights..GOP legislature says "no way"


‘A literal gut punch’: Missouri workers devastated by Republican repeal of paid sick leave | Missouri | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2025/aug/12/missouri-paid-sick-leave-repeal

Voters approved sick leave mandate by 58% but lawmakers are caving to lobbying by the state’s chamber of commerce

Being sick is a costly business for Bill Thompson, who worked in the fast-food industry in Independence, Missouri, for more than 30 years, and recently worked at Guitar Center until early July, when he was laid off.

“As an older worker, I have health issues from working on my feet and with my hands for many years with no breaks for eight to 10 hours a day. I have done it for 38 years now, living paycheck to paycheck,” 54-year-old Thompson said, noting in Missouri workers are not mandated breaks of any kind during work.

So when Republicans in Missouri repealed a paid sick leave mandate that the state’s voters approved by 58% after an aggressive lobbying campaign by the Missouri chamber of commerce and industry and other business industry groups, he said, “It was a literal gut punch.

---------

The state’s house and senate passed HB567, signed into law on 10 July by the governor, Mike Kehoe, which repealed the paid sick leave mandate and annual minimum wage increases tied to the consumer price index beyond the increase to $15 an hour in 2016 that voters also approved.