SAN ANTONIO – The fight for paid sick time is continuing after a local organization submitted a petition with more than 140,000 signatures last month.

However, a gray area in the city's charter has created friction between City Clerk Leticia Vacek and petitioners.

"We fulfilled our obligation to the city by respecting their deadline and now it's time for the city to do the same," said Oscar Tu of the Texas Freedom Network.

On Thursday, several pro paid sick leave advocates rallied outside city council chambers. The urgent call to action comes after petitioners said the city clerk failed to authenticate their 142,885 petition's signatures after it was submitted on May 24.

The petition launched in March after Austin's city council passed a similar rule in regards to sick time leave in February. Local petitioners are hoping to get their own version of the policy on the November ballot.

"What should've happened [Wednesday] is that the petition's signatures should've been verified," said Tu.

Section 37 of San Antonio's city charter outlines the filing, examination and certification of petitions. A closer look at the language shows the city clerk has 20 days to certify that the signatures are from Bexar County voters.

"In practice, our charter has been interpreted to mean that it is business days so the work can be done effectively," said Liz Provencio, the first assistant city attorney.

No language in the charter clarifies that petitions are worked on during business hours. Petitioners said they went based off calendar days. However, the clerk's office is basing it off the work week.

"Now, the city is requesting two more weeks but this two week delay could be really risky for us," Tu said.

While petitioners feel their hard work is left in limbo, the clerk's office said they are still working diligently on the verification. However, Vacek's office had no estimate as to when the verification process will be completed.