President Obama will mark the Labor Day holiday Monday by signing an executive order requiring paid sick leave for employees of federal contractors, including 300,000 who currently receive none.<br />The White House wouldn't specify the cost to federal contractors to implement the executive order, which Obama was to address at a major union rally and breakfast in Boston.<br />The Labor Department said any costs would be offset by savings that contractors would see as a result of lower attrition rates and increased worker loyalty, but produced nothing to back that up.<br />Under the executive order, employees working on federal contracts gain the right to a minimum of one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours they work.<br />Stretched out over 12 months, that's up to seven days per year.<br />The order will allow employees to use the leave to care for sick relatives as well, and will affect contracts starting in 2017 - just as Obama leaves office.
