Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Urgent: One Size Fits All Shift Breaks Bill Gaining Momentum
The shift breaks bill (SB 660/HB 16) is gaining momentum with key lawmakers and could win approval of the House Economic Matters Committee. The legislation requires employers of 50 or more employees to provide a half-hour nonworking shift break after six consecutive hours of work, or a fifteen minute nonworking shift break where an employee works between four and six consecutive hours. The Maryland Chamber opposes this bill because it:
- Creates a private right of action
- Increases administrative burdens on employers
- Creates equity issues for multi-state corporations with employees in different states
- Does not take into account emergency situations - this bill would subject employers who could not provide shift breaks on account of emergencies to civil lawsuits and damages.
The Maryland Chamber is working on a letter to submit to members of the General Assembly expressing the business community’s concern about the legislation. We would like to get as many impacted businesses to sign-on to this letter as possible. If you would like us to add your company’s name to the letter, contact Vice President of Government Affairs Allyson Black at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Your support is appreciated!
