Large private sector employers without labor contracts would have to provide workers with up to five days a year in paid sick and safe leave under a bill approved Wednesday by the state Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee.

The bill would set a minimum requirement for sick leave and a new category known as "safe leave," paid time off for workers to respond to domestic violence. Workers would earn one hour of sick and safe leave for every 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours — or five eight-hour workdays — each year. Workers would be able to carry over unused sick and safe leave up to 40 hours, but take only 40 hours of leave in a calendar year.

The bill would apply to private sector employers with more than 100 workers. Smaller businesses, employers with collective bargaining agreements, and the state and counties would be excluded.

The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association and several other business interests are against the bill, contending that a "one-size-fits-all" policy is not practical for many businesses and could add new administrative costs.

The bill now goes to the full Senate. If it passes, it would move to the state House. Similar bills to require paid sick and safe leave failed to advance earlier this session.

State Sen. Clayton Hee (D, Kahuku-Kaneohe), chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee, said he wanted to add the safe leave provision to help victims of domestic violence. He said the bill would allow workers who have accrued sick leave to use it for safe leave to respond to domestic violence, such as seeking medical treatment, counseling and legal protection.

The bill — House Bill 341 — was originally introduced last year to prevent large employers with collective bargaining agreements from punishing workers who use accrued sick leave. A separate version of that bill became state law last July and has been challenged by several large health care and hotel interests in federal court as an unconstitutional violation of equal protection and a pre-emption of federal labor law.

Hee said the new draft responds to the legal challenge. One of the legal arguments by the health care and hotel interests is that the sick leave law passed last year treats large employers without labor contracts more favorably, unlawfully differentiating between unionized and nonunionized employers. The new draft would prevent large employers without labor contracts from punishing workers for using accrued sick leave.

Hee acknowledged that a minimum requirement of five days of sick and safe leave is less generous than what many large private sector employers already provide workers. But the senator cited examples where nonunion and unionized companies offer comparable sick leave benefits, which suggests that market forces may lead many companies to provide more than the minimum to remain competitive.

State Sen. Sam Slom (R, Diamond Head-Hawaii Kai), who voted against the bill in committee, said the state already imposes a "tremendous burden" of mandates on businesses. He said many private sector employers already extend sick leave to workers.

Jim Tollefson, president and chief executive officer of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, said he appreciated that Hee exempted small businesses from the sick and safe leave mandate. But he questioned why the bill was necessary.

"This measure forces employers to a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, which will hinder an employer’s flexibility in providing this benefit and result in additional costs, direct and indirect, as well as impose a significant administrative burden," he said in an email. "This may not be best-suited for different industries with varying workforce needs. It will be another mandate placed on businesses among others that already exist.

"Hawaii is in a global competition for business investment and job creation. At a time when the state is placing an emphasis on jobs and the economy, this measure and any other mandate that creates perceived or real additional costs, will undermine these efforts."