Bus drivers, monitors, and food service workers with CSEA/SEIU Local 2001 in Connecticut captured the attention of lawmakers recently when they described being forced to choose between their jobs and their health. As part of the "Everybody Benefits" coalition, workers joined legislators, physicians, and public health groups to urge passage of a paid sick days law this year.

If you're still on the fence as to whether or not workers need and deserve paid sick days, consider the fact it's National Women's History Month--and take into account how the lack of access to sick leave disproportionately affects females in the workforce.

As the earnings of women in the workforce have increased, so has their contribution (an average of 44%) to family income. Therefore, without paid sick leave, the loss of a working mother's income could have a very detrimental effect on her family's economic well-being.

A lack of paid sick leave doesn't only affect her health and paycheck: Since so many women in the workforce also have children or take care of dependent family members, lacking paid leave holds even more significance.

SEIU members' stories provide tangible proof that some employers are putting public health and safety at risk by refusing to live up to common sense sick leave standards. Read the CSEA Connections Blog for compelling stories, including one worker who was forced to drive a bus while recovering from surgery.