Evaluating Paid Sick Leave: Social, economic and health implications for Seattle

From the report Evaluating Paid Sick Leave
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Many employers have long recognized that providing good benefits is essential to attracting and retaining good employees.

Multiple studies have found that providing paid sick leave results in higher morale and productivity, less absenteeism, and lower rates of turnover. Providing paid sick leave that is available for the care of sick family members has been shown to increase firm profits.

Turnover is particularly costly for businesses. Estimates of the direct cost of losing and replacing an employee range from 25% to 50% of annual pay for hourly workers, and much more for highly skilled employees.

That means that replacing a half-time employee earning $9.00 per hour directly costs an employer $2,340 to $4,680. Replacing a full-time $12.00 per hour worker runs $6,000 to $12,500. Indirect costs of lost productivity add more.

Policies that support work/life balance in general and flexible sick leave in particular result in better retention and measurable declines in employee turnover in all types of businesses.