Beginning July 1, 2017, workers in Minneapolis will accrue one hour of sick and safe time for every 30 hours worked, thanks to a new ordinance. Workers will accrue up to 48 hours per year, the unused portion of which can carry over to the following year, but after that, that accrual balance in following years cannot exceed 80 hours – and that includes salaried employees or other “exempt” workers.
An employee can use their accrued sick and safe time 90 calendar days after they begin employment. They can use accrued time to care for his/her own or a family member’s mental or physical illness, diagnosis, or treatment; or after incidents of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking of an employee or a member of the employee’s family.
As we covered in our March 7, 2016 article about sick and safe leave in the Twin Cities, Minneapolis was further along in the process than its neighbor across the Mississippi River, but St. Paul may not be too far behind in establishing its own version of the sick and safe leave ordinance.
Minneapolis: Paid or Unpaid Sick and Safe Time?
The ordinance covers employers with one or more workers performing work in the geographic limits of Minneapolis, but the number of employees determines whether a worker is paid for the time off.
Whereas an employer with five or fewer workers simply must allow their employees to use accrued sick and safe time unpaid, an employer with six or more workers must pay their employees using accrued time at their normal hourly rate. Service workers are not eligible to be compensated for lost tips or commissions, however.
The ordinance requires businesses to include in their count of employees:
“…all persons performing work for compensation on a full-time, part-time or temporary basis shall be counted, whether or not the persons work in the city.”
All new businesses (other than chain establishments/franchises) are required to provide unpaid sick time but new businesses with six or more workers are not required to provide paid sick time for one year. That new business exemption will sunset in 2022.
Minneapolis Paid Sick and Safe Time Posting and Notice Requirements
The City will release a posting that employers must display in the workplace. Although English remains the most widely spoken language in the city, Minneapolis will also provide the posting in “all languages spoken by more than five percent of the workforce in the city.” Employers would also be required to display versions of the postings in those languages spoken by at least five percent of the employer’s workforce, if it is published by the department.
If an employer provides an employee handbook to its employees, the handbook must include in the Minneapolis Sick and Safe Time notice. Additionally, if an employer requests information about their accrued sick time levels, the employer must provide that in writing or electronically; however, an accessible online system or information on each pay stub would cover this requirement.
As Anne Jakala, Esq, out in the recent hr.com webinar City and County Labor Laws, city and county workplace posting requirements are creating a new layer of complexity for large employers. That’s why GovDocs delivers ongoing labor law posting compliance for North America’s largest employers – city, county, state, federal – and Canada, too!
Contact us to learn more about how we can help simplify your labor law posting compliance program.
City & County Paid Sick Leave Guide
Download the City & County Paid Sick Leave Guide to learn:
- City & County Paid Sick Leave Accrual Rates for 20 U.S. cities
- Annual Leave Caps
- Initial Usage Time Requirements
…all in on one convenient guide!