HR Tip of the Week

Posted on  |  Employee benefits

5 Key Facts About Paid Family Leave Requirements

A growing number of state and local jurisdictions provide wage replacement benefits to employees when they take time off from work for certain family or medical reasons. These paid family and medical leave (PFL) programs typically impose certain requirements on employers. Here are five key facts about PFL programs.

   
   Table of Contents

#1: There are currently 15 PFL programs across the country

#2: Absences covered differ by jurisdiction

 
California Connecticut Maryland New Jersey Rhode Island
San Francisco Delaware Massachusetts New York Vermont
Colorado District of Columbia New Hampshire Oregon Washington

#3: Many  PFL programs require employer contributions

#4: Most PFL programs offer job protection

#5: Many PFL programs require employer notices

 

#1: There are currently 15 PFL programs across the country

As of January 1, 2023, thirteen states, the District of Columbia and one local jurisdiction have enacted/created a PFL program.

 
Jurisdictions with PFL program (January 1, 2023)

All employers

California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Maryland (10.1.23*), Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington

10 or more employees

Delaware (1.1.25*)

20 or more employees

San Francisco

Voluntary

New Hampshire, Vermont

*Contribution start date

With limited exceptions, covered employers must participate in the state/local PFL program, but employers may be allowed to provide coverage through a private insurance plan instead, as long as it meets all of the jurisdiction’s requirements. Check your state/local law for details.

#2: Absences covered differ by jurisdiction

The first wave of these programs tended to be limited to covering absences related to having a new child or caring for a family member with a serious health condition, but the reach of PFL programs has been expanding in recent years. Here are brief summaries of the absences covered under each program. 

 

Jurisdiction

Absences covered by PFL program

California

CA outline

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Participate in a qualifying event because of a family member’s deployment to a foreign country

San Francisco

CA-SF Outline

  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child

Colorado

 CO outline

(benefits start 1.1.24)

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty
  • When the employee or their family member is a victim of domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault

Connecticut

Connecticut outline

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for their own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Care for a family member who was injured on active duty in the military
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty
  • Address specific situations associated with the fact that they are experiencing family violence

Delaware

DE outline

(benefits start 1.1.26)

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition (employers with 25 or more employees)
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition (employers with 25 or more employees)
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child (employers with 10 or more employees)
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty (employers with 25 or more employees)

District of Columbia

DC Outline-1

  • Care or companionship for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Receive prenatal medical care

Maryland

MD outline

(benefits start 1.1.25)

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Care for a service member with a serious health condition
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty

Massachusetts

MA Outline

 

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Care for a family member who was injured serving in the armed forces
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty

New Hampshire

NH Outline

 

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition (when their employer doesn’t offer Short Term Disability insurance)
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty
  • Care for a family member who was injured serving in the armed forces

New Jersey

NJ Outline

  • Care for a family member with a health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Handle certain matters related to domestic or sexual violence

New York

NY Outline

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty

Paid family leave may also be available in some situations when an employee or their minor, dependent child is under an order of quarantine or isolation due to COVID-19.

Oregon

OR Outline

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Address specific situations associated with surviving sexual assault, domestic violence, harassment, or stalking

Rhode Island

RI Outline

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child

Vermont

VT Outline

(benefits start 7.1.24 for private sector)

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Manage affairs while a family member is on active duty
  • Care for a family member who was injured serving in the armed forces

Washington

WA Outline

 

  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Care for an employee’s own serious health condition
  • The birth, adoption, or foster placement of a new child
  • Spend time with a family member who is about to be deployed overseas or is returning from overseas deployment

Note: California, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island also have separate Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) programs that cover certain other situations which are not covered in the chart above.

Check the laws in your jurisdiction for details.

#3: Many PFL programs require employer contributions

With the exception of New Hampshire and Vermont, all the programs require employee contributions (via payroll deductions), but eight of these programs also require at least some employers to contribute. The following jurisdictions require employer contributions for PFL:

 

Covered employers

Jurisdictions with contribution requirements

All District of Columbia
10 or more employees Delaware, Colorado
15 or more employees Maryland
20 or more employees  San Francisco
25 or more employees Massachusetts, Oregon
 50 or more employees Washington

Seven states (California, Connecticut, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont) don’t require employers to make contributions for PFL at all. In these states, PFL is funded exclusively by employees, unless the employer elects to pay the employee’s contribution. 

Note: New Hampshire’s PFL program is voluntary for both employers and employees. Therefore, employers aren’t required to contribute. However, the state provides a tax credit for employers that do make contributions to the program. Vermont’s PFL program is also voluntary for both employers and employees. The state hasn’t yet indicated whether there will be a tax credit for employers that make contributions to the program.

#4: Most PFL programs offer job protection

Currently, most PFL laws have express job-protection provisions. For example, in Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington, employees returning from PFL must be reinstated to the position they held before the start of the leave, or to a comparable/equivalent position.

In other states, the PFL programs may merely provide a financial benefit rather than a leave entitlement with job protection. However, even in states without express job-protection provisions for PFL, employees may be protected under another federal, state or local law. For example, California's PFL law doesn't specifically offer job protection, but an employee's absence may be protected under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, California Family Rights Act, or paid sick leave law.

Note: Even though New Hampshire’s program is voluntary, it requires employers with 50 or more employees to restore employees to the position they held prior to leave, or to an equivalent position. Vermont hasn’t yet indicated whether its program will do the same.

#5: Many PFL programs require employer notices

In addition to withholding and remitting employee contributions, making employer contributions (if applicable), and reinstating employees after PFL (where applicable), the PFL laws also typically require employers to provide employees with notices about their rights and/or post a notice in the workplace. For example, Massachusetts requires employers to:

Check your state/local law for details.

Conclusion

If you have employees in any of the jurisdictions covered above, understand your rights and obligations under the law and train supervisors on how to respond to leave requests. The PFL trend is expected to continue, so employers in other jurisdictions should watch for developments as well.

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