Employees may use the paid sick time for personal illness, preventive care, or to recover from domestic violence or assault.   Employees may also use the time to care for a sick family member, which includes: a child (regardless of age or dependency status), spouse, registered domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, parent, stepparent, or legal guardian of an employee or of the employee's spouse or registered domestic partner.
 

All employers, including private and government agencies, must comply with the Act. Unlike other state or federal employment laws, there is no minimum number of employees that an employer must have on the payroll in order to be subject to the Act.  Employees exempt from the Act are those covered by a collective bargaining agreement, providers of in-home supportive services, and individuals employed by air carriers as flight deck or cabin crew members.

An employer is not required to provide compensation to an employee for accrued, unused paid sick days upon termination, resignation, retirement, or other separation from employment. However, if an employee separates from an employer and is rehired by the employer within one year from the date of separation, previously accrued and unused paid sick days shall be reinstated.   The employee shall be entitled to use those previously accrued and unused paid sick days and to accrue additional paid sick days upon rehiring.  An employee who is exempt from overtime requirements as an administrative, executive, or professional employee under a wage order of the Industrial Welfare Commission is deemed to work 40 hours per workweek, unless the employee's normal workweek is less than 40 hours, in which case the employee shall accrue paid sick days based upon that normal workweek.

An employee's itemized wages statements must set forth the amount of paid sick leave available. Employers must retain paid sick leave records for a period of three years.   An employee may determine how much paid sick leave he or she needs to use, provided that an employer may set a reasonable minimum increment, not to exceed two hours, for the use of paid sick leave.

To further protect employees, the Act prohibits an employer from discriminating or retaliating against an employee who requests paid sick days.  The Labor Commissioner will release mandatory posting notices before the next year's effective date.  In addition, the Labor Commissioner and Attorney General shall have authority to enforce the Act, which includes assessing civil penalties, up to $4,000 per violation, plus administrative fines, attorney's fees, costs, and interest.

Take Away

 In preparation for compliance with the new Act which takes effect July 1, 2015, make sure you:

• Have a written policy in place permitting the accrual of one hour paid sick time for every 30 hours worked
• Have full-time employees, who work 40 hours per week, accrue paid sick time at 1.33 hours per work week
• Revise your existing policy if it provides for a minimum of five paid sick days per year to six days per year for full-time employees once the new law takes effect
• Carry over employees' unused accrued paid sick time to the following year of employment
• Note that the new law does not require you to cash out unused accrued paid sick time after termination, resignation, retirement, or other separation from employment
• Reinstate accrued paid sick time for employees rehired within the year
• Comply with posting requirements
• Ensure itemized wage statements show amount of paid sick time available

Our employment law attorneys are available to create a paid sick leave policy or review an existing policy to ensure compliance with the new Act.