The Lake Express ferry is thinking about moving its Milwaukee call center, with about 12 jobs, to Michigan because of Milwaukee's new sick leave mandate, according to Rose Ulbrich, director of human resources for the ferry.

"It's a challenge," she said of the sick leave ordinance that was approved by voters in a referendum on Nov. 4.

Ulbrich was just one of about 70 business executives and owners who filled a conference room this morning at the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC) office in downtown Milwaukee to learn more about how to comply with the new law and about the MMAC's legal challenge of the law.

Scott Beightol, managing partner of Michael Best & Friedrich, provided an update on the MMAC's legal challenge, and Daniel Finerty of Godfrey & Kahn S.C. discussed compliance issues.

Many Milwaukee business owners are outraged about the new law and confused about how to comply.

"I've never seen a single issue like this in the city of Milwaukee have such a chilling response on the business climate of the city," said MMAC president Tim Sheehy.

Sheehy said he talked to one business owner that was considering a 40,000-square-foot expansion in the city but was "stopped cold" by the sick leave law

"It's having a very negative impact," Sheehy said. "The biggest problem we are having is articulating the unseen impact of this, which is the potential jobs that would have come to the city."

The sick leave law was not drafted or requested by the Milwaukee Common Council or Mayor Tom Barrett. It was approved by a referendum by 68 percent of the voters. The referendum was placed on the ballot through the process of direct legislation that required a minimum of 25,600 voter signatures in support of the proposal. 9to5, a grassroots organization that advocates on behalf of working women, turned in an estimated 42,000 signatures.

With the ordinance, companies in Milwaukee would be required to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours an employee works. Employees' accrued sick leave would be capped at 72 hours for workers at large companies and at 40 hours for workers at small businesses.

Public sector employees are not covered by the law.

The only other cities in the nation with a similar sick leave law are San Francisco and Washington, D.C.

Sheehy and the attorneys expressed concern that supporters of the law were comparing Milwaukee to those cities, which are in much larger metropolitan areas and have dramatically different economies and cultures than Milwaukee.

"We'd be the first U.S. city to have this," Sheehy joked.

Advocates for the law want to get a few cities to have a sick leave law, which would create an unfair situation for businesses in those cities and will then put pressure on the federal government to create a national standard, Sheehy said.

"The political endgame is to create a patchwork quilt across the country to drive employers nuts enough to concede, 'Let's at least have a federal standard,'" he said.

The MMAC's legal challenge will emphasize that the law conflicts with existing federal and state laws, Beightol said.

The MMAC filed a claim against the city, which Beightol said he expects will be officially denied today by the Common Council. Once that occurs, the MMAC will seek a court injunction to block implementation of the law until there is a ruling on the lawsuit, he said.

Unless there is an injunction, the law will take effect Feb. 10.

The law is vague about many areas, which will make it difficult to comply with and demonstrates the legal problems with the ordinance, the attorneys said. To comply with the law, the attorneys recommended that employers create a paid time off system for sick days, vacation and personal days instead of breaking those down into separate groups.

"If you have a PTO policy that guarantees nine days for the purposes specified in the ordinance, you are in compliance," Finerty said.

Sheehy and the attorneys said the sick leave law is a wakeup call to business owners that they need to get politically involved and stay in touch with their elected representatives about matters that will impact their businesses.

"It's valuable to contact the mayor and your council member," Sheehy said. "They were way too quiet through this process."

"This is a very good lesson," Finerty said. "Your legislators are hearing from the unions, your employees. They are hearing the worst stories. Without a check on that (with input from the business community), they are bound to make the wrong decisions. This is a very good lesson in getting involved and getting on your legislators' radar."

Anne Zizzo, president and CEO of Zizzo Group Advertising & Public Relations, thanked the MMAC for fighting the sick leave ordinance.

"This is nuts," she said.

The MMAC will host a second informational meeting about the sick leave law on Tuesday, Dec. 2, from 4 to 5:15 p.m. at the MMAC's office, 756 N. Milwaukee St., Suite 400, Milwaukee. Call (414) 287-4127 for more information.