Minnesota bill would mandate paid sick leave from almost all employers

A plan currently navigating through the Minnesota Legislature would mandate that most employers provide paid sick leave to all of their employees.

Workers could use the paid time off for physical or mental illness, treatment or preventive care, caring for a family member and absences related to domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking. They could also use it when there are closures for weather or public emergencies or to quarantine to avoid spreading communicable diseases.

"The reality of life is that everyone gets sick at one point or another," the chief author, Democratic Rep. Liz Olson of Duluth, said at a news conference Thursday ahead of the bill's expected passage on the House floor.