The Different Types of Paid Sick Leave

Paid Sick Leave, Executive Order 13706 (EO)

Background and Availability

This paid sick leave was signed in 2015 by President Obama. It provides sick leave for preventative care and short-term healthcare for companies with federal government contracts. It was enacted in 2017.

Other Names For This Sick Leave

• Paid sick leave
• Paid sick time
• Earned sick leave
• Paid sick days
  
  

How Does the Policy Work?

When employees do work covered by the federal contract, they will earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours of work. Employers can either make employees accrue it one hour at a time or make the year of leave available to employees in advance.  The executive order leaves it to the employer’s discretion.

Which Employers Need to Comply With It?

Contractors or subcontracts with the following types of federal contracts:

• Service Contract Act contracts
• Concessions contracts
• Davis-Bacon Act contracts
• Service contracts for federal lands or properties
  
  

Who Can Workers Use This Leave to Care For?

Paid sick leave can be used for personal healthcare or to care for relatives during poor health. The executive order allows for significant bonds that are like a family relationship, not just legal or biological relationships. Explicitly named in the executive order are:

• Parents
• Children
• Spouse/Fiance
• Siblings
• Immediate in-laws (siblings or parents)
• Cousin
• Aunt/Uncle
• Grandparents
• Grandchildren
• Adopted or Foster children
  
  

Will Workers Still Have Their Jobs When They Return?

Yes, job protection is included in the executive order. It is unlawful to retaliate against, discriminate against, or terminate employees for using their paid sick leave entitlements.

What Are The Reasons An Employee Can Use This Leave?

This paid sick leave was created for illness, injury, or preventative care of the employee or their family that require short-term absences. It also provides employees with “safe time” to deal with stalking, domestic violence, or sexual assault of them or their family. This may be used as the employee sees fit, like to attend court, seek medical care and recover, or leave the domestic violence situation.

How Much Time Off Does This Allow?

Employees may accrue up to 56 hours of paid sick leave per year. Unused paid sick leave from the previous year can carry over to the next year without affecting their yearly limit.

Will Workers Be Paid For This Leave? How Is It Funded?

During the paid sick leave, employees must receive their normal pay and benefits.

Paid Sick Leave, State and Municipal Laws

Background and Availability

Many cities, counties, and towns have their own paid sick leave laws to protect the health of workers and their families. 5 states also have paid sick leave laws:

• California
• Connecticut
• Massachusetts
• Oregon
• Vermont
  
  

Other Names For This Sick Leave

• Paid sick leave
• Paid sick time
• Earned sick leave
• Paid sick days
  
  

How Does the Policy Work?

Every policy is different, but most paid sick leave is paid per hours worked. For example, for every 40 hours of work, the employee accrues 1 hour of paid sick time. The employers will pay employees for the time off and are required to give employees time off for circumstances covered in the policy.  

Which Employers Need to Comply With It?

Most policies apply to large companies with 15 or more employees.

Who Can Workers Use This Leave to Care For?

Each law is different, but generally, they can use the leave for their health care or for that of their children, parents, grandparents, or grandchildren.

Will Workers Still Have Their Jobs When They Return?

Most of these laws provide job protection so that employees can return to work after their paid sick leave. It is also unlawful to discriminate or retaliate against employees who use their paid sick leave.  

What Are The Reasons An Employee Can Use This Leave?

This paid sick leave was created for illness, injury, or preventative care of the employee or their family that require short-term absences. It also provides employees with “safe time” to deal with stalking, domestic violence, or sexual assault of them or their family. This may be used as the employee sees fit, like to attend court, seek medical care and recover, or leave the domestic violence situation.

How Much Time Off Does This Allow?

Depending on the law, employees can accrue between 24 and 72 hours of paid sick leave per year. The size of the employer will affect the amount of paid sick leave employees can accrue. 

Will Workers Be Paid For This Leave? How Is It Funded?

Eligible employees must be paid their regular pay and benefits.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Background and Availability

The FMLA was signed in 1993 by President Bill Clinton. It gives employees unpaid leave and job protection for US employees.

Other Names For This Sick Leave

This law is widely known as the FMLA.

How Does the Policy Work?

The FMLA gives eligible employees up to 12 weeks of job protected, unpaid leave for certain family or medical reasons. This includes your health conditions or those of a parent, child, or spouse. Active-duty status is also covered. Under FMLA, eligible employees may take up to 26 workweeks of FMLA leave in a single year to care for a covered servicemember with a serious illness or injury. Employers do not have to pay their employees during their FMLA leave, but they must maintain their group health insurance. Employees must be given their job back when they return from their FMLA leave.  

Which Employers Need to Comply With It?

• Private-sector employers with over 50 employees
• Public agencies, including a local, state or federal government agency, regardless of the employee numbers
• Public or private elementary or secondary schools, regardless of the employee numbers
  
  

Who Can Workers Use This Leave to Care For?

• To bond with newborn children or newly adopted or fostered children
• Care for a parent or spouse with a serious health condition
• To recover from a serious health condition of their own
• A disabled adult child with a serious health condition
• To care for an active service family member with a serious injury or illness
  
  

Will Workers Still Have Their Jobs When They Return?

Yes, this law protects employees jobs. The employer must either give the employee their original job or an equivalent with the same benefits, pay, and employment conditions of their original job. FMLA leave may not be used against an employee during employment action. An employer also may not deny, reduce, or interfere with an employee’s FMLA rights.

What Are The Reasons An Employee Can Use This Leave?

• To bond with newborn children or newly adopted or fostered children
• Care for a parent or spouse with a serious health condition
• To recover from a serious health condition of their own
• A disabled adult child with a serious health condition
• To care for an active service family member with a serious injury or illness
  
  

How Much Time Off Does This Allow?

An employee may take up to 12 workweeks of FMLA leave during a 12-month period after the birth of their child or the placement of an adopted or fostered the child for adoption or foster care or any of the other reasons above. An employee may take up to 26 workweeks of FMLA leave during a 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness.

Will Workers Be Paid For This Leave? How Is It Funded?

FMLA leave is unpaid leave. Employers can use their discretion to allow employees to use personal time, vacation leave, or other paid leave to be paid for some or all of their time off. The paid time off will run concurrently with the FMLA leave and is dependent on the employer’s policies. Employers must continue to pay group health care premiums during FMLA leave.

Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)

Background and Availability

PFML provides employees with longer paid leave in order to care for ill family members or new children. It exists in four states:

• California
• New Jersey
• New York
• Rhode Island

Paid medical leave also allows for paid time off for an employee’s own serious illness.

Other Names For This Sick Leave

• Family caregiver leave
• Family leave insurance
• Temporary disability insurance (TDI)
• Short-term disability
• Family and medical leave insurance (FMLI).
  
  

How Does the Policy Work?

PFML works more like an insurance program. Both employees and employers pay into the “account.” When a worker needs leave, they are able to receive “benefits” in the form of partial wage replacements while on their leave.

Which Employers Need to Comply With It?

Because PFML programs act as insurance and workers typically pay into a fund that provides wage replacement to leave-takers, there are no employer coverage rules and no carve-outs or exemptions for small employers.

Who Can Workers Use This Leave to Care For?

• Domestic partner or spouse
• Child
• Parent
• Grandparents or grandchildren in some states
  
  

Will Workers Still Have Their Jobs When They Return?

It varies depending on the state’s law. California and New Jersey do not provide job protection, but New York and Rhode Island do.

What Are The Reasons An Employee Can Use This Leave?

They are the same as FMLA leave.

• To bond with newborn children or newly adopted or fostered children
• Care for an immediate family member with a serious health condition
• To recover from a serious health condition of their own
• A disabled adult child with a serious health condition
  
  

How Much Time Off Does This Allow?

It depends on the state law, but most programs provide between 6 and 12 weeks of paid leave each year.

Will Workers Be Paid For This Leave? How Is It Funded?

The employee will receive a percentage of their pay which will be capped each month or week. The details vary depending on the state; check your state’s program.