BB&K In The News

BB&K’s Cynthia Germano talks about California’s most talked about new labor law in this month’s Press-Enterprise Best in Law Column.

BY CYNTHIA M. GERMANO

With so many new business-related laws coming from Sacramento each new year, it’s often hard to find one that really stands out. This year, though, the most talked about new law of the year must be AB 1522, the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act.

The act creates paid sick leave for both private and public employees, including full-time, part-time, temporary, per diem, migrant and seasonal employees.

While the act took effect on Jan. 1, the right to accrue and take sick leave under the law does not take effect until July 1. Employers should begin preparing now by reviewing current policies and drafting new ones as needed.

Beginning Jan. 1, employers were required to post, in a conspicuous place, a poster giving notice to employees about the new law and their rights to use paid sick leave.

After Jan. 1, employers are required to provide most employees with an individualized “Notice to Employee” that includes paid sick leave information.

After July 1, employers are required to provide notice to employees, on their pay stubs or another document that accompanies their paycheck, regarding the number of days of sick leave available to the employee.

The law has several components:

• An employee must work 30 or more days within a year of employment on or after July 1 to be eligible.
• Paid sick days accrue at the rate of one hour per 30 hours worked, beginning July 1. Exempt employees are deemed to work 40 hours per week for accrual purposes, unless an employee’s regular schedule is less.
• An employee can use the leave beginning on the 90th day of work, up to three days per year.
• Employees are to be paid at their regular hourly rate. If an employee’s pay rate fluctuates, employers will be required to divide the employee’s total compensation for the previous 90 days by the number of hours worked, and pay the sick leave time at that rate.
• Employees may carry/accrue up to six days – however, there is no payout provision for accrued leave.
• Leave can be used for illness of a child, parent, parent-in-law, spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild or sibling.
• Leave can be used for diagnosis, care, treatment and preventive care. Victims of domestic violence may also use the time.

An employee is entitled to paid sick leave upon an oral or written request to his employer, and employers cannot require an employee to seek a replacement as a condition of leave.

If the need for leave is foreseeable, the employee must give reasonable advance notice. But where the need is unforeseeable, the employee need only give notice as soon as possible.

If an employer already has a paid sick leave policy, it is not required to establish a new policy. However, employers must ensure that their policies are at least as beneficial to employees as what the law requires. If not, revised or new policies must be put in place.

Almost all business are subject to the act, with the exceptions being businesses that provide publicly funded In-Home Supportive Services. Employees covered by collective bargaining agreements with specified provisions are also exempt, as are individuals employed by an air carrier as a flight deck or cabin crew member if they receive compensated time off at least equivalent to the requirements of the new law.

Temporary employees of a staffing agency are covered by the act, so whoever is the employer or joint employer is required to provide paid sick leave to the qualifying employees.

This is the second-of-its-kind law in the United States – with Connecticut being the only other state with a similar law.

*This article first appeared in The Press-Enterprise on Jan. 22, 2015. Republished with permission.