NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- First Lady Chirlane McCray, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and other advocate groups rallied at City Hall on Monday, in favor of a bill that would give mandatory paid personal time to New Yorkers.Advocates for the bill are calling on the City Council to pass a law that would require every employer with five or more workers or with at least one domestic worker to provide 10 days of paid time off a year.
Williams first introduced legislation mandating paid vacation as a councilman in 2014, with Mayor de Blasio taking up the cause earlier this year.
"Working people first" has been the slogan and one of de Blasio's main talking points during his presidential bid.
The chambers of commerce from all five boroughs oppose the bill and stated in a letter to Council members on September 6, that the city must find a way to help fund and administer the mandatory vacation days.“The de Blasio administration is attempting to dismiss and ignore small business owners and advocates … who express concern about the financial and operational impact the unfunded mandate poses by calling them 'naysayers,'" reads the letter, which was also signed by groups including the NYC Hospitality Alliance.In a tweet, Chirlane McCray, defended the bill writing "Paid personal time is both a fundamental right for workers and an essential component of a happy, healthy life. #ItsAboutTime we catch up to every other industrialized country in the world."