Photo by Jusdevoyage on Unsplash

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives published on its Policy Note blog on the state of access to paid sick leave in BC & the importance of bringing in a legal entitlement to paid sick leave to expand access. 

The brief, co-authored by Kendra Strauss and Iglika Ivanova shares some new data from their BC Employment Precarity survey.  Here are some of the key findings:

• More than half of BC workers aged 25 to 65 do not have access to paid sick leave (53 per cent).
• A shocking 89 per cent of the lowest-paid workers do not have access to paid sick leave.
• There are substantial regional differences across BC in access to paid sick leave.
• Unionization improves access to paid sick leave.

They also compare access to paid sick leave in Canada and the US. 

Their analysis shows that leaving the provision of paid sick leave to the generosity of employers simply has not worked for Canadian workers. 

BC Employment Precarity survey brief: https://www.policynote.ca/multiple-jobs-bc/.

Iglika Ivanova
Senior Economist and Public Interest Researcher
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives - BC Office

May 27, 2020