California Paid Sick Leave Update

A California paid sick leave update will go into effect next year as the governor signed legislation to significantly change the state’s law.

At a high level, the updated law increases the number of available paid sick days per year, as well as accrual and carryover amounts.

Signed by the governor Oct. 4, 2023, the updates to California’s paid sick leave law go into effect Jan. 1, 2024.

Paid Leave Management. Simplified.

California Paid Sick Leave Update

Specifically, the updates to California’s paid sick leave law include:

• Increasing the amount of leave to 40 hours (up from 24 hours)
• Raising the annual usage cap to 40 hours
• Increasing the carryover amount 80 hours (up from 48)

Also, employers that frontload will need to provide 40 hours paid sick leave at the beginning of the year.

“Too many folks are still having to choose between skipping a day’s pay and taking care of themselves or their family members when they get sick,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. “We’re making it known that the health and wellbeing of workers and their families is of the utmost importance for California’s future.”

California’s Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act has been in place since 2014.

How to Manage Paid Leave for Remote and Hybrid Employees

Paid Sick Leave in California

As a refresher, California’s paid sick leave law applies to nearly all employers in the state. Employees accrue one hour for every 30 hours worked.

Allowed reasons for use include the employee or family member’s health condition, including diagnosis and preventive care, and time off for employee for domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.

Covered family members are defined as the employee’s child (biological, adopted, foster, step, legal ward or to whom the employee stands in loco parentis and regardless of age or dependency), parent (biological, adoptive, foster, step, legal guardian of employee or employee’s spouse or domestic partner or person who stood in loco parentis when employee was a minor), spouse, registered domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild, sibling and a person identified by the employee at the time the employee requests paid sick days.

Other aspects of paid sick leave in California include:

• Recordkeeping requirements
• Anti-retaliation provisions for employee use
• A required labor law poster
• Fines for noncompliance

Find more information in the updated legislation.

California Cities – Paid Sick Leave Laws

Also, it is worth noting that there are several other paid sick leave laws in California for employers to monitor. Several cities have passed paid sick leave laws:

• Berkeley
• Emeryville
• Los Angeles
• Oakland
• San Diego
• San Francisco
• Santa Monica
• West Hollywood

And there are other leave types in San Francisco — paid parental leave, paid military Leave and public health emergency leave — as well as paid leave for hotel workers in Long Beach and Los Angeles.

Paid Leave Compliance Resources

Managing Paid Leave Laws

Employers that operate in jurisdictions across the country always have to contend with new and updated laws, which have been especially prevalent with paid leave in 2023.

There was the Colorado paid sick leave update and another paid sick leave update in Connecticut, as well as potential additional guidance from labor departments on other laws.

Recent news on the paid leave front includes:

• Maine Paid Family and Medical Leave Law
• Illinois Paid Leave Law Guidance
• Minnesota Paid Sick Leave
• Minnesota Paid Family and Medical Leave

The challenges of managing paid leave for large employers have never been more complex.

Webinar Recording: What’s New – Paid Leave in 2023

Conclusion

Employers with locations in the Golden State should prepare for the California paid sick leave update coming in 2024.

As a reminder, the changes apply to the number of available paid sick days per year, as well as accrual and carryover amounts.

This Employment Law News blog is intended for market awareness only, it is not to be used for legal advice or counsel.