In a near unanimous ruling Tuesday, the Missouri Supreme Court decided to uphold a voter-approved paid sick leave and minimum wage law passed on November's ballot.
Six of the seven justices agreed the language in Proposition A's summary and fiscal note did not mislead voters and that the results of the measure's statewide vote should stand.
In November, 57% of Missouri voters voted for Proposition A, gradually raising the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour and implementing a system where most workers would accumulate paid sick leave over time.
As it stands, Prop A will require employers of more than 15 people to provide one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours an employee works.
A coalition of opponents, headed by several Missouri business owners, filed suit against the results, claiming the initiative's language was misleading and that its two-issue nature, addressing sick leave and wages, was unconstitutional.
Though justices ruled in favor of the law's language, they did not decide on the two-subject complaint, arguing they do not have jurisdiction in the matter.
Missouri Chamber of Commerce leaders said Tuesday they were "deeply disappointed" by the ruling, which was the last chance to strike the initiative before its rollout dates begin.
The Court's decision also comes as attacks on paid sick leave continue to move through the legislature.
Rep. Eric Woods (D-Kansas City) has been fighting against efforts to overturn Prop A. He said the ruling should shake up how Republican Senators approach their work.
"I think some folks were probably hoping for a different ruling. Now they don't have it," Woods said. "They're going to have to go back to the negotiating table, hopefully."
"Or, you know, if I were them, I would maybe just scrap this entire attempt to overturn the will of the voters entirely," Woods added. "But I'm not in charge."
Missouri Chamber leaders encouraged the Senate to take "immediate action" in passing HB 567, a bill striking all paid sick leave language from the initiative, as the final avenue for overturning Proposition A.
The bill also revises the state's minimum wage standard. If passed, minimum wage would not be indexed to inflation.
"[The ruling] just means we need to fix [Prop A] legislatively because they didn't see a problem with it," bill author Mike Bernskoetter (R-Jefferson City) said.
Beenskoetter claimed the revision of Prop A following the ruling was a bipartisan effort.
But as the ruling was being handed down, Senate Democrats spent more than two hours delaying action on HB 567 by filibustering the reading of the Senate journal.
"There was a lot of frustration, particularly on my end and the Democratic caucus on how things went with negotiations and conversations around it," Sen. Brian Williams (D-University City) said. "I think we need to uphold the will of the people."
Williams believes it's important to recognize the Supreme Court's stance on Prop A.
"If the legal system says that we need to provide people with earned sick pay leave, we need to do that," Williams said. "If the voters send us here to advocate on their behalf, we need to be in support of the voters."
The Missouri Chamber of Commerce's president, Kara Corches, argues the damage Prop A could cause should take center stage. She argues for Missouri businesses, one policy for paid sick leave does not fit all.
"This could really severely impact our economic competitiveness as a state," Corches said. "We want to say that we are a state that is open and welcoming to business and we think that prop sends the exact opposite message of that."
Missouri businesses will have to begin rolling out paid sick leave on Thursday. Corches argues that even if lawmakers strike it down, there will still be losses businesses face in the meantime.
"We are going to encourage all businesses to comply with the law. And what does that mean if the legislature comes back and modifies or strikes parts of Prop A?" Corches said. "It just leaves employers kind of in the lurch of what they're supposed to be doing."
Prop A would guarantee paid sick leave for 1 in 3 Missouri workers who are not currently guaranteed it by their employer, according to the Missouri Budget Project.
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