CA to Expand Paid Sick Leave; Require Workplace Violence Prevention Plan

California has enacted legislation that will expand the amount of paid sick leave to which employees are entitled and make other changes. The legislation (Senate Bill 616) takes effect January 1, 2024.

Note: Since the publication of this Compliance Update, the California Department of Industrial Relations has updated its answers to frequently asked questions about the state’s paid sick leave to address the changes discussed below.

The Details

Current Law	Effective January 1, 2024
The Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 gives employees the right to use up to 24 hours or three days (whichever is more) of paid sick leave per year.	Employees have the right to use up to 40 hours or 5 days (whichever is more) of paid sick leave per year.
Employees generally accrue one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. An employer may use a different accrual method, other than providing one hour per every 30 hours worked, provided that the accrual is on a regular basis, so that an employee has no less than 24 hours of accrued sick leave or paid time off by the 120th calendar day of employment or each year.	Employees generally accrue one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. An employer may use a different accrual method, other than providing one hour per every 30 hours worked, provided that the accrual is on a regular basis, so that an employee has no less than 24 hours of accrued sick leave or paid time off by the 120th calendar day of employment or each year, and no less than 40 hours of accrued sick leave or paid time off by the 200th calendar day of employment or each year .
An employer may satisfy the accrual requirements by providing no less than 24 hours or 3 days of paid sick leave that is available to the employee to use by the completion of the employee’s 120th calendar day of employment.	An employer may satisfy the accrual requirements by providing no less than 24 hours or 3 days of paid sick leave that is available to the employee to use by the completion of the employee’s 120th calendar day of employment, and no less than 40 hours or 5 days of paid sick leave that is available to the employee to use by the completion of the employee’s 200th calendar day of employment.
Unused, accrued paid sick leave carries over to the following year of employment. An employer may limit an employee’s use of accrued paid sick days to 24 hours or 3 days in each year. This provision is satisfied, and no accrual or carryover is required, if the full amount of leave is received at the beginning of each year. “Full amount of leave” for these purposes is defined as 3 days or 24 hours.	Unused paid sick leave carries over to the following year of employment. An employer may limit an employee’s use of accrued paid sick days to 40 hours or 5 days in each year. This provision is satisfied, and no accrual or carryover is required, if the full amount of leave is received at the beginning of each year. “Full amount of leave” for these purposes is defined as 5 days or 40 hours .
An employer is under no obligation to allow an employee’s total accrual of paid sick leave to exceed 48 hours or 6 days, provided that an employee’s rights to accrue and use paid sick leave are not otherwise limited.	An employer is under no obligation to allow an employee’s total accrual of paid sick leave to exceed 80 hours or 10 days , provided that an employee’s rights to accrue and use paid sick leave are not otherwise limited.
The law sets forth provisions on compensation for accrued, unused paid sick leave upon termination of employment, the lending of paid sick days to employees, written notice requirements, the calculation of paid sick leave, reasonable advance notification requirements, and the timing of payment of sick leave taken.	The specified provisions will preempt any local ordinance to the contrary.
An employer isn’t required to provide additional paid sick leave if the employer has a paid leave or paid time off policy, makes an amount of leave available to employees that may be used for the same purposes and under the same conditions as these provisions, and the policy satisfies one of the specified conditions. One of those conditions requires the employer to have provided paid sick leave or paid time off in a manner that results in an employee’s eligibility to earn at least 3 days or 24 hours of sick leave or paid time off within 9 months of employment.	The condition will be changed so that the employee must be eligible to earn at least 5 days or 40 hours of sick leave or paid time off within 6 months of employment .
Providers of in-home supportive services are entitled to up to a maximum of 24 hours or 3 days each year of paid sick leave.	Providers of in-home supportive services and waiver personal care services are entitled to up to a maximum of 40 hours or 5 days each year of paid sick leave.

Next Steps

Review policies and procedures to ensure compliance with Senate Bill 616 beginning January 1, 2024.
Train supervisors on the changes.

Note: Closer to the effective date, the Paid Sick Leave policy for California employers in the Employee Handbook in RUN Powered by ADP® will be amended to reflect the changes.

California has enacted legislation that will require many employers to implement an effective workplace violence prevention plan that contains certain elements, including training. The legislation (Senate Bill 553) takes effect July 1, 2024.

The Details

Exceptions

The following employers/places of employment are exempt from the requirements of Senate Bill 553.

Healthcare facilities, service categories, and operations covered by Section 3342 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.
Employers that comply with Section 3342 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.
Facilities operated by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, if the facilities are in compliance with Section 3203 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.
Certain law enforcement agencies (see the text of the law for details).
Employees teleworking from a location of the employee’s choice, which isn’t under the control of the employer.
Places of employment where there are fewer than 10 employees working at the workplace at any given time and that aren’t accessible to the public, if the workplaces are in compliance with Section 3203 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.

Written Plan Required

Unless exempt, employers must adopt a workplace violence prevention plan that is in writing and made available and easily accessible to employees, authorized employee representatives, and representatives of the state at all times. The plan must be in effect at all times and in all work areas and be specific to the hazards and corrective measures for each work area and operation. The written plan may be incorporated as a stand-alone section in the written injury and illness prevention program or maintained as a separate document.

Required Plan Elements

The written plan must include the following elements.

Names or job titles of the individuals responsible for implementing the plan. If there are multiple individuals responsible for the plan, their roles must be clearly described.
Effective procedures to obtain the active involvement of employees and authorized employee representatives in developing and implementing the plan, including, but not limited to, through their participation in identifying, evaluating, and correcting workplace violence hazards, in designing and implementing training, and in reporting and investigating workplace violence incidents.
Methods the employer will use to coordinate implementation of the plan with other employers, when applicable, to ensure that those employers and employees understand their respective roles, as provided in the plan. These methods must ensure that all employees are provided the training required, and that workplace violence incidents involving any employee are reported, investigated and recorded.
Effective procedures for the employer to accept and respond to reports of workplace violence, and to prohibit retaliation against an employee who makes such a report.
Effective procedures to ensure that supervisory and non-supervisory employees comply with the plan.
Effective procedures to communicate with employees regarding workplace violence matters, including, but not limited to, both of the following:
- How an employee can report a violent incident, threat, or other workplace violence concern to the employer or law enforcement without fear of reprisal.
- How employee concerns will be investigated, and how employees will be informed of the results of the investigation and any corrective actions to be taken.
Effective procedures to respond to actual or potential workplace violence emergencies, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
- Effective means to alert employees of the presence, location and nature of workplace violence emergencies.
- Evacuation or sheltering plans that are appropriate and feasible for the worksite.
- How to obtain help from staff assigned to respond to workplace violence emergencies, if any, security personnel, if any, and law enforcement.
Procedures to develop and provide the training required.
Procedures to identify and evaluate workplace violence hazards, including, but not limited to, scheduled periodic inspections to identify unsafe conditions and work practices, and employee reports and concerns. Inspections must be conducted when the plan is first established, after each workplace violence incident, and whenever the employer is made aware of a new or previously unrecognized hazard.
Procedures to correct workplace violence hazards identified and evaluated in a timely manner.
Procedures for post-incident response and investigation.
Procedures to review the effectiveness of the plan and revise the plan as needed, including, but not limited to, procedures to obtain the active involvement of employees and authorized employee representatives in reviewing the plan. The plan must be reviewed at least annually, when a deficiency is observed or becomes apparent, and after a workplace violence incident.
Procedures or other information required by the state as being necessary and appropriate to protect the health and safety of employees.

Recording Incidents

Employers must record information in a violent incident log for every workplace violence incident. Information that is recorded in the log for each incident must be based on information solicited from the employees who experienced the workplace violence, on witness statements, and on investigation findings.

The employer must omit any element of personal identifying information sufficient to allow identification of any person involved in a violent incident, such as the person’s name, address, email address, telephone number, Social Security number, or other information that, alone or in combination with other publicly available information, reveals the person’s identity.

The log must be reviewed during the periodic reviews of the plan.

The information recorded in the log must include all of the following.

The date, time and location of the incident.
The workplace violence type or types, as described in the law, involved in the incident.
A detailed description of the incident.
A classification of who committed the violence, including whether the perpetrator was a client or customer, family or friend of a client or customer, stranger with criminal intent, co-worker, supervisor or manager, partner or spouse, parent or relative, or other perpetrator.
A classification of circumstances at the time of the incident, including, but not limited to, whether the employee was completing usual job duties, working in poorly lit areas, rushed, working during a low staffing level, isolated or alone, unable to get help or assistance, working in a community setting, or working in an unfamiliar or new location.
A classification of where the incident occurred, such as in the workplace, parking lot or other area outside the workplace, or other area.
The type of incident.
Consequences of the incident, including, but not limited to:
- Whether security or law enforcement was contacted and their response.
- Actions taken to protect employees from a continuing threat or from any other hazards identified as a result of the incident.
Information about the person completing the log, including their name, job title, and the date completed.

Required Training

Employers must provide effective training to employees. Training material appropriate in content and vocabulary to the educational level, literacy and language of employees must be used.

The employer must provide employees with initial training when the plan is first established, and annually thereafter, on all of the following.

The employer’s plan, how to obtain a copy of the employer’s plan at no cost, and how to participate in development and implementation of the employer’s plan.
The definitions and requirements of the law.
How to report workplace violence incidents or concerns to the employer or law enforcement without fear of reprisal.
Workplace violence hazards specific to the employees’ jobs, the corrective measures the employer has implemented, how to seek assistance to prevent or respond to violence, and strategies to avoid physical harm.
The violent incident log required and how to obtain copies of records.
An opportunity for interactive questions and answers with a person knowledgeable about the employer’s plan.

Additional training must be provided when a new or previously unrecognized workplace violence hazard has been identified and when changes are made to the plan. The additional training may be limited to addressing the new workplace violence hazard or changes to the plan.

Recordkeeping

Records of workplace violence hazard identification, evaluation and correction must be created and maintained for a minimum of five years.

Training records must be created and maintained for a minimum of one year and include training dates, contents or a summary of the training sessions, names and qualifications of persons conducting the training, and names and job titles of all persons attending the training sessions.

Violent incident logs must be maintained for a minimum of five years.

The above records must be made available to employees and their representatives, upon request and without cost, for examination and copying within 15 calendar days of a request.

Records of workplace violence incident investigations conducted must be maintained for a minimum of five years. These records must not contain “medical information.”

Next Steps

Read the text of the law (the plan requirements are contained in Section 4).
Ensure compliance with the law by July 1, 2024.

Compliance Update