Missouri Gov. Kehoe repeals paid sick leave guarantee that voters approved last November

On Thursday, Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) signed House Bill 567 into law, which repeals the paid sick leave guarantees that voters in the state approved via ballot measure last November.

Proposition A was approved by 1,693,064 (58%) voters during last year’s elections, and its passage was also upheld by the state Supreme Court. It would have guaranteed workers at least one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. In a press release, Kehoe referred to the sick leave provision as “onerous” and “burdensome” to businesses, implying it was wrong to mandate when and how the benefit should be provided.

“Conservative leadership is about keeping more money in the hands of Missouri families, and less in government coffers,” Kehoe said. “Today, we are protecting the people who make Missouri work — families, job creators, and small business owners — by cutting taxes, rolling back overreach, and eliminating costly mandates.”

HB 567 also repeals the state’s annual minimum wage increase for inflation, which has been in effect since 2006.

HB 567 passed through the Republican-controlled state legislature in May despite Democratic lawmakers delaying its passage through multiple filibusters. The GOP also used a rare rule to end debate on HB 567 to shove the bill through the legislature.

After the bill passed, Kehoe also mischaracterized Proposition A by blaming a “very liberal group from the East Coast” for swooping in and implementing a mandate on Missouri businesses (it was directly approved by Missourians.)

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) mischaracterizes the state’s paid sick leave law — which voters overwhelmingly voted to enact, and the GOP is trying to repeal — falsely claiming it’s a “piece of legislation” written by “a very liberal group from the East Coast.”

Missourians passed… pic.twitter.com/rD7dUlRnhX

— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) May 16, 2025

Missouri House Democratic Leader Ashley Aune (D-Kansas City Northland) bashed Kehoe’s decision to sign HB 567 in a news release.

“The governor’s action today demonstrates the absolute disdain Republicans have for working Missourians,” Aune said. “But in stripping workers of their legal right to earned sick leave, the governor and his allies have probably guaranteed this issue will be back on the ballot next year as a constitutional amendment that will place worker protections beyond their reach.”

While debating HB 567 in February, Rep. Sherri Gallick (R-Belton) argued that employees can’t be trusted to use paid sick leave faithfully.

“Under the mandated sick leave, potential abuse is nearly impossible to address,” Gallick told the House Commerce Committee. “Employers cannot ask an employee why they were absent, leaving them vulnerable to lawsuits for merely inquiring.”

The Missouri GOP has taken offense to voters using direct democracy in recent years, with Sen. Rick Brattin (R-Harrisonville) chastising constituents during a speech on the Senate floor in April. Brattin argued that voters who approved Proposition A had “no skin in the game” and didn’t take into account the harm paid sick leave guarantees would put on the bottom line of employers.

Missouri State Sen. Rick Brattin (R-Harrisonville) insults voters who passed a paid sick leave initiative last November.

“This is the problem with direct democracy… They have no skin in the game whatsoever when it comes to these sorts of measures … Most people casting these… pic.twitter.com/hnKm6bI495

— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) April 17, 2025

Brattin penned Senate Bill 22, which makes it easier for confusing ballot language to appear in front of voters. Kehoe also signed SB 22 into law.