Have you had a cold or flu yet this season? Were you able to stay home with your sick child?

We all get sick, but we can't all afford to stay home and get well. Nearly half of the full-time workers in the state can't take time off when they are sick.

For some, staying home means losing their job. Almost 250,000 Maine workers must go to work sick or not, putting everyone at risk.

That shouldn't happen in Maine. Parents should never be forced to choose between caring for themselves or a sick child and losing their livelihood.

My great-grandson is often sick since he started to go to day care. Sick children suffer when their parents don't have paid sick days. Pre-school-age children are the first to signal when flu season has arrived. Child care center rules require sick children stay at home, but many of them end up at day care because their parents don't have paid sick days. This sets up a chain reaction, with the virus passing from child to playmate, to playmates' parents, and to parents' co-workers.

Our state senators and representatives will have a chance to make a difference for Maine workers. They will vote on LD 1665, "An Act to Aid in the Prevention of the Spread of H1N1." This bill would provide between three and five paid sick days a year for full-time workers.

It is the right thing to do. I urge support for this important legislation.

Dot Treadwell, Lewiston