Fact Check: Did Mitch McConnell vote against sick leave 4 times?

WASHINGTON, DC: After US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spent weeks away from work following a reported fall, a viral claim resurfaced in August 2026.

Social media posts alleged that McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, voted against or blocked measures requiring employers to provide sick leave in 1993, 2015, 2020 and 2022.

Claim: Mitch McConnell voted against sick leave 4 times

A claim spread online that Mitch McConnell had voted against or blocked measures requiring employers to provide sick leave in 1993, 2015, 2020 and 2022.

McConnell said in July 2026 that he had been hospitalized after a fall on June 14. In early August, his office announced that he had been discharged from a rehabilitation center and would continue his recovery at home.

One version of the claim appeared on X on August 9. The post said that McConnell had “repeatedly voted against federal paid sick leave legislation” and listed the years 1993, 2015, 2020 and 2022.

The user also referred to a false report claiming that McConnell had died, writing that he had been on paid sick leave for more than seven weeks.

Similar posts appeared on other social media platforms. A widely shared post on Threads claimed, "Mitch McConnell has been on paid leave since June 14. Full salary. Full benefits. Zero votes cast.

The same guy who voted NO on paid family leave (1993), blocked paid sick leave during COVID (2020), and voted against 7 days of paid sick leave for rail workers (2022)."

Fact Check: True

The claim is true, but some details need clarification. Research shows that Mitch McConnell voted against or blocked measures related to paid or unpaid sick leave in the four years mentioned.

In 1993, McConnell voted against the Family and Medical Leave Act. However, the law provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave, not paid leave as some social media users claimed.

In 2015, he voted against an amendment to a budget resolution that would have provided paid sick leave.

On March 18, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, McConnell voted in favor of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which included emergency paid sick leave.

However, earlier that day, he voted against an amendment that would have strengthened the measure and extended its benefits through the end of 2021. Later, in December 2020, he reportedly blocked an effort to extend the paid leave requirement, which expired on December 31.

In 2022, McConnell voted in favor of a bill to prevent a railroad workers' strike. However, earlier that same day, he voted against a separate resolution that would have given those workers seven days of paid sick leave each year.