Friend,

Tonight, the House is set to vote on legislation to respond to the coronavirus outbreak, which the World Health Organization just declared a pandemic. The United States is still the only developed nation without a national policy on paid sick leave, but the draft emergency response bill would fix that.

Sign now: In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Congress must support national paid sick leave.

I understand that you may be anxious about the spread of the coronavirus. In Michigan’s 13th Congressional district, we’re staying #RootedInCommunity by listening to residents and ensuring that everyone has access to information, water, treatment, and testing.

But there’s a way we can act nationally, right now, to help reduce the spread and help those who are most vulnerable.

Sign now to urge Congress: Pass national paid sick leave.

Right now, American employees who lack paid sick leave must go to work to provide for their families—despite being ill, and possibly contagious. That’s why national paid sick leave is an essential strategy for preventing and slowing the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S.

While many government workers, including U.S. legislators, have paid sick leave, about 57 million workers do not. You may be one of them. Many of these people work in jobs with high risk of exposure—hourly or lower-paying jobs, the "gig economy," or in our education system—and have contact with hundreds of people each day while working.

Most low-income people can’t work from home, and don’t have paid sick leave from their employers. But health experts are strongly advising that everyone exposed to the virus self-quarantine for at least two weeks.

Without paid sick leave, people will be forced to come into work sick, or risk losing their jobs and their ability to survive. We need to support people who’ve been exposed, are caring for family members who’ve been exposed, or are caring for children whose schools are closed.

Sign now to urge Congress: Pass national paid sick leave.

I’ve been fighting for nearly a decade for paid family and sick leave, since I was a Michigan state legislator. It’s one of the reasons I ran for Congress, to represent the majority of people in this country who undergo economic challenges like lack of leave. Half of all Congressmembers are millionaires and don’t understand what people go through.

While we’ve been struggling to pass the FAMILY Act through Congress, which would provide all workers with family and medical leave insurance, polls show that the vast majority of Americans support paid family and medical leave for all workers. We did reach a victory late last year, reaching an agreement to give federal workers paid parental leave. But we have a long way to go.

The spread of COVID-19 demonstrates how urgently we need this change. But Senate and House Republicans are trying to block an emergency response.

Please sign now to tell Congress: Pass national paid sick leave!

As of now, the emergency response package we’ll vote on in the House tonight will provide for free coronavirus testing (including for uninsured people), emergency food aid (including to make up for lost free school lunch benefits if kids are kept home from school), stronger unemployment insurance, and up to three months of paid sick leave for workers affected by the coronavirus. It would also protect frontline healthcare workers.

As the World Health Organization says, countries can change the course of this pandemic—if we act now. In just two weeks, Italy went from around 300 to over 10,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus. We need to learn from other countries. With Congress set to go on recess starting tomorrow, we need your help now to demonstrate the national support for paid sick leave.

Please sign now to tell Congress: Pass national paid sick leave!

Thank you,

Rashida

P.S. Here’s some more information about how you can make a difference individually: