Paid sick leave laws pose a compliance challenge to employers. While the legislative framework for sick leave laws tends to be similar (they generally define eligible employees, an accrual formula, reasons for leave, carry-over requirements, employee and employer notice and documentation requirements), each law differs with respect to the application of these requirements which, in turn, poses unique challenges for multi-state (and
multi-city) employers.

For example, employers would need to identify specific business needs and evaluate the laws that apply to their employees to determine if they can maintain one paid time off (PTO) policy to govern all employees across various jurisdictions or if they will need to maintain a sick leave policy separate from their PTO policy. There are pros and cons for each option that need to be carefully considered before making a decision.

With 50 states and 39,000 municipalities, the number of sick leave mandates will continue to grow rapidly. Five states, the district of Columbia, and more than 25 local jurisdictions have already enacted laws requiring employers to provide sick leave to employees.

So what does it mean to you?

You should begin thinking about the policy you are going to implement to comply with any new law. If you already have a PTO policy (which may or may not include time off for sick reasons), you should think about whether to maintain one all-inclusive PTO policy, or a separate policy strictly for sick time (and if so, how to coordinate with federal FMLA as well as paid and unpaid state leave laws). Additionally, you need to be aware of any specific record keeping or paystub requirements, or notice/poster requirements, including employee handbooks.

Want to know more? Read this Eye on Washington to further understand the impact to your business, such as:

•       What states already have policies in place? Where can I get information on them?
•       What should I be thinking about when considering paid sick time vs. PTO?
•       Are there any specific record keeping or paystub requirements, or notice/poster requirements I need to be aware of?

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