DULUTH — “We have some really exciting protections that came into effect on Jan. 4,” said state Sen. Jen McEwen on the KAXE Morning Show.
McEwen is a DFLer from Duluth in her second term in the Minnesota Senate and chairs the Labor Committee. She talked about the new laws pertaining to rights for renters and earned sick and safe leave.
Earned safe and sick time
Under the new law, employers earn safe and sick time for every 30 hours, up to a maximum of 48 hours per year. The new law includes absence related to domestic abuse, mental or physical illness of employees or their families and closure of the employee’s family member’s school or care facility among other things.
“This is just having sick time, having paid time off for when you need to take care of yourself for health reasons, when you need to take care of a family member for health reasons,” McEwen said. “So these are protections that ... many Minnesotans already enjoy. Overtime, various labor protections have led to some employers knowing that this is something that they need to offer.
“But unfortunately, it wasn't universal, and that burden has fallen mostly on lower paid employees in the service sector. Especially in big box stores, especially places where people just didn't have the right to earn any sick time.”
Workers have had to make difficult choices to keep jobs, often spreading illnesses to coworkers or not getting paid, she said.
“We knew we needed to catch up with our peer nations around the world,” said McEwen, explaining that Minnesota was long past due for the basic rights of workers.
McEwen said “safe time” is particularly important in situations when people are experiencing domestic violence.
“This really is to try to fill that gap of people who are falling through the cracks.”Senator Jennifer McEwen-DFL Duluth
“We’ve heard testimony that people would be literally forced into not being able to do anything about their domestic violence situations, because they just simply never had the ability to take some time off,” she said.
McEwen said she hasn’t heard much opposition from business owners to the new law, with feedback from some who were glad to implement the new law because it levels the playing field with competing businesses. McEwen said she believes it raises the bar for all employers and it’s good for productivity and work environments.
“This is something that many workers have come to expect and it is only a certain class of workers who had been taken advantage of,” she said, explaining she believes it is a basic human and labor right all workers deserve.
McEwen anticipates sick and safe time guarantees will have a positive effect on the Minnesota workforce, giving workers a little bit of breathing space.
“It will just lift all boats,” she said.
Find more information from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry here.
Tenants’ rights and housing
The new public safety and judiciary finance law in 2024 has many provisions directed at landlord and tenant relations. One of them is landlords are now required to give at least 24-hour notice before they enter the rental.
“The change basically gives renters some just basic dignity in being able to control their space and who’s entering when,” she said.
Another new provision in the law allows for a new formal process for expunging evictions from records, which has been a longtime problem.
“Having an eviction on your record can be a huge barrier in finding housing,” McEwen said. Now, eviction records won’t be public until the court enters a final judgment.
McEwen explained another part of the new law will prohibit landlords who allow animals in rentals from requiring the practice of declawing or devocalizing an animal. A growing number of veterinarians and animal organizations oppose this practice. Session Daily reports declawed animals that have had the last bone of each toe amputated can experience nerve damage, phantom pain, arthritis, or pain from bone fragments as a result, and be less likely to use a litter box.
Also newly mandated in law is a requirement for landlords to maintain a 68-degree temperature in each unit.
The Minnesota Reformer has more information the new laws in Minnesota pertaining to tenants and landlords here.
