The City of San Antonio may face a lawsuit over its upcoming Paid Sick Leave ordinance.
The ordinance takes effect on August 1. It was a citizen driven petition allowed under the city charter and was required to be approved by the San Antonio City Council, which it did last year.
It requires San Antonio businesses to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked by an employee. The requirements of how much time can be accrued vary based on business size.
It’s been met with push back from businesses owners and now a lawsuit may be on the table.
A lawyer representing business groups sent a letter to San Antonio City Attorney Andy Segovia on Thursday saying they plan to pursue legal action.
“Based on my current assessment of the circumstances, I anticipate the need of, and am prepared to pursue, injunctive relief in court to prevent the Paid Sick Leave Ordinance from taking effect,” attorney Ricardo Cedillo said in his letter.
But before filing a suit, Cedilla said they would like to meet with the city as a professional courtesy “to explore any potential remedies short of an injunction that might be available.”
The letter listed several groups that may be included in the suit like the American Staff Association, San Antonio Restaurant Association and the Associated Builders and Contractors – South Texas Chapter, among other groups like staffing agencies.
A city spokeswoman said the city has received the letter and is accepting the group’s offer to meet. However, a date for the meeting has not yet been set.
Joey Palacios can be reached at Joey@TPR.org and on Twitter at @Joeycules.
