Through existing employer benefits many US workers have the option of calling in sick to work with no repercussions, including reprimand and loss of wage, but millions of other workers must make the decision to lose a day’s pay for staying home or go to work and expose others to illness. Unlike minimum wage, there are no legal mandates for employers to provide their workers with minimum paid time off for illness. However, this year several states, including Ohio, Illinois, North Carolina, Vermont, and Pennsylvania, are considering passing bills that would mandate paid sick leave.

Those in favor of making paid sick days a labor standard feel it is a basic labor right and that workers should not have to jeopardize their pay check or their employment for missing a day’s work due to illness or injury. However, many business owners have a conflicting view, arguing that requiring paid sick time could put some companies out of business.

Proponents of such action from state legislation and those who supported the Healthy Families Act, sponsored by Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and introduced to Congress in May of 2005, believe that it is fair labor practice to grant employees paid sick days. Other positive factors supporting paid sick days include a potentially positive impact on health care costs as a result of preventative care and prevention of potential economic loss in the workplace by reducing the spread of germs to healthy co-workers.

Leaders in the business community provide opposition to mandated sick days because of the increased costs. Still others oppose the mandate because of the monumental task of enforcing a law that requires employers to keep extensive records of sick leave and the broad verbiage of current bills opens up new avenues for employees to sue employers for unfair labor practices.

Currently, the majority of the bills being considered make paid sick leave a required benefit for employees of companies employing a minimum number of workers. In Ohio, for example, employers with more than 25 employees would be required to provide seven days of paid sick leave to full-time workers and would have to calculate a pro-rated number of days for those working part time.

According to the grassroots organization Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), only 48% of American companies provide sick leave benefits, an issue ACORN feels stiffs workers and jeopardizes public health. This may be an accurate statement, especially considering workers with no paid sick leave may avoid keeping a sick child home from school to avoid losing a day’s pay. If one sick child with a cold or the flu could infect numerous other students and teachers, it may stand to reason that public health is in jeopardy along with education.

This year, as lawmakers in 11 states examine bills mandating sick leave, proponents say that if state legislators fail to act, they will take the cause to the public via issues on November ballots. California, Montana and Rhode Island already plan to have paid sick days enforced beginning in 2009.

Jennifer Beam is a featured writer for Xomba.com. Read the rest of her work here .