Judge delays sick-leave law

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A Milwaukee County judge Friday delayed the start of Milwaukee’s enforcement of a sick-leave law until the court rules on a lawsuit challenging the legality of the ordinance.

“This is not a very difficult call today,” Judge Thomas Cooper said before ordering the injunction. “This is such a big deal to everybody that we better do it right from the start.”

Barbara Zack Quindel, an attorney representing 9to5 Milwaukee, National Association of Working Women, said the organization, which petitioned for the sick-leave referendum Milwaukee voters overwhelmingly approved in November, will not challenge the injunction and will focus on defending the sick-leave law.

“We remain confident that the challenge does not have merit,” Quindel said. “We certainly did think immediacy is necessary, and the voters think immediacy is necessary.”

Scott Beightol, the attorney representing the Milwaukee Metropolitan Association of Commerce, which requested the injunction and filed the lawsuit challenging the law, said businesses can rest easy that they will not have to change their policies Feb. 10, the planned implementation date for the law.

“The most important thing is that it’s status quo,” he said. “The sun’s going to come up tomorrow, and it’s business as usual.”

Cooper opened Friday morning’s hearing by telling the audience to “get ready for the long haul” and to expect the lawsuits surrounding the sick-leave law will go to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

“I am only the first step,” he said. “It’s an absolute, dead solid certainty that whatever decision I make will be appealed.”

As for the possibility of taking the case to the Supreme Court, Sangita Nayak, 9to5 Milwaukee lead organizer, said the organization hopes city of Milwaukee attorneys won’t stop arguing in favor of the ordinance. The city is opposing MMAC’s argument that the law is illegal, but it did not oppose the association’s request for an injunction.

“We would hope that the city would fulfill its role representing voters,” she said. “We are a small nonprofit here in the city, but we have a lot of allies.”