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Mid-Year Checkup on Paid Sick Leave Laws
Practical Law Legal Update w-002-7931 (Approx. 5 pages)
Mid-Year Checkup on Paid Sick Leave Laws
by Practical Law Labor & Employment
| Law stated as of 19 Jul 2016 • ExpandCalifornia, Illinois, Minnesota...USA (National/Federal), Vermont |
Resources to help employers navigate the patchwork of state and local paid sick leave laws, including a roundup of recent developments in the first half of 2016.
The landscape of paid sick leave laws is rapidly evolving, primarily at the state and local level. Despite efforts to pass federal legislation, most employers, except certain federal contractors, are not required by federal law to provide their workers with any paid sick leave. States and local municipalities have taken the lead in filling this coverage gap, with the trend continuing throughout the first half of 2016.
For example:
- In January 2016, the city of New Brunswick, New Jersey, joined 11 other municipalities in that state to enact paid sick leave legislation (see State Q&A, Leave Laws: New Jersey, Question 11). Proposed legislation to provide statewide benefits is in progress. A paid sick leave bill narrowly passed the senate in March, but faces resistance from business groups and Governor Christie.
- In March 2016, Vermont became the fifth state, joining California, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Oregon, along with the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, to enact a paid sick leave law (see Legal Update, Vermont Becomes Fifth State to Require Paid Sick Leave).
- In May 2016, Minneapolis became the first city in Minnesota to mandate paid sick leave for its workers. Chicago followed closely behind in June 2016. For more on those laws, see Legal Updates:
- Despite state-mandated paid sick leave in California, the cities of San Diego and Santa Monica each passed their own more generous paid sick leave laws in 2016, and San Francisco amended its existing law. For more on the new laws, see Legal Updates:
The patchwork of state and local laws creates challenges for employers with workers in multiple jurisdictions. Some employers opt to create multiple policies for their workers based on the employee's location, ensuring minimal compliance with the applicable laws in each jurisdiction. Other employers instead offer a uniform paid time off (PTO) policy (generally allowed under the paid sick leave laws that address the issue) designed to comply with the most generous of the potentially applicable leave laws. Sorting through those requirements can be complicated and time-consuming for human resource professionals and the legal counsel that advise them.
Practical Law has made that task easier by creating and regularly updating its Paid Sick Leave State and Local Laws Chart: Overview, a comprehensive chart covering the state and local laws as they are passed and amended. Present coverage includes:
- California (statewide), plus the cities of:
- Emeryville;
- Long Beach;
- Los Angeles (including provisions applicable to airport workers);
- Oakland;
- San Diego;
- San Francisco (city and county); and
- Santa Monica.
- Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (including 2016 amendments expanding the law's coverage and scope).
- Connecticut (statewide).
- District of Columbia.
- Illinois (Chicago only).
- Louisiana (New Orleans only).
- Maryland (Montgomery County only).
- Minnesota (Minneapolis only).
- Massachusetts (statewide).
- New Jersey cities and municipalities, including:
- Bloomfield;
- East Orange;
- Elizabeth;
- Irvington;
- Jersey City;
- Montclair;
- Newark;
- New Brunswick;
- Passaic;
- Paterson;
- Plainfield; and
- Trenton.
- New York (New York City only).
- Oregon, including local laws that were preempted by state law as of January 1, 2016 in each of:
- Eugene; and
- Portland.
- Pennsylvania cities of:
- Philadelphia; and
- Pittsburgh.
- Vermont (statewide).
- Washington cities of:
- SeaTac;
- Seattle;
- Spokane; and
- Tacoma.
Practical Law has many other resources to assist employers with leave law compliance, including: