(Bloomberg) -- A coalition of Chicago business groups said a new rule guaranteeing paid leave amounts to “death by a thousand cuts,” adding to the challenges of rising property taxes and persistent crime. 

Mayor Brandon Johnson last week passed new rules requiring companies to provide workers with 10 days of paid time-off and sick leave a year, calling it the most progressive rule of its kind in the US. 

The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, which represents more than 1,000 companies, and almost a dozen other business groups warned in a statement the new regulations will “devastate Chicago business,” forcing many to cut back or relocate. The groups said the ordinance is too costly and complicated, and does not allow enough flexibility for small businesses.

The concerns underscores the rising tension between business lobbyists and Johnson, who ousted fellow Democrat Lori Lightfoot earlier this year on a platform that called for pro-worker policies and higher taxes on the rich.

The mayor of the third-largest US city has also recently passed regulations forcing employers to pay tipped workers the minimum wage, no matter how much they make in gratuity. Last week, city council voted to put a proposal on the March 2024 ballot that would raise taxes on property sales valued at more than $1 million.

“With this added burden of the most expensive and complicated paid leave policy in the country, as well as continued supply chain and labor challenges, persistent crime, costly regulations, and skyrocketing property taxes, it is death by a thousand cuts,” according to the statement, also signed by the Illinois Restaurant Association, the Hospitality Business Association of Chicago and the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association.

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Chicago is at a crossroads, with the city and its suburbs battling stubbornly high levels of crime, the soaring costs to care for thousands of migrants, and a number of corporate departures that include billionaire Ken Griffin’s Citadel, Caterpillar Inc., Boeing Co., and the local offices of Tyson Foods Inc. 

The new rule guarantees up to five days of paid time off and five days of sick time for all workers in Chicago. It’s “a common-sense, compromise approach that supports working people, helps businesses by increasing worker productivity and worker retention, and boosts our economy,” Alderman Mike Rodriguez, sponsor of the ordinance, said in a statement announcing the measure last week. 

Currently, there is no US federal law mandating paid family and medical leave, though some states have their own programs and requirements in place, according to the US Department of Labor.

The Chicago business groups also criticized the city council for giving employers only eight weeks to comply with the ordinance, or face fines.

“City Council has cemented Chicago’s status as a hostile place for employers of every size and sector to do business,” the groups said. 

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