New Statewide Paid Sick Leave Law Takes Effect, with Implications for Westchester County Employers
Posted by [email protected] on Sep. 29, 2020 / Subscribe 0
Effective September 30, 2020, employers throughout New York State are required to provide sick and safe leave to their employees. Notably, only accruals begin on September 30 and employers are not required to permit employees to use their new leave until January 1, 2021. The state law does not preempt the existing sick leave laws in Westchester County and New York City, which means those laws also remain in effect and employers need to comply with the requirements of both.
For Westchester employers, the formula for accruing sick and safe leave under the New York State law is the same as under the existing county law: one hour of leave for every 30 hours worked. The big difference is that the state law requires employers with four or fewer employees to provide 40 hours of paid sick and safe leave if their net income from the prior tax year exceeded $1 million, and employers with 100 or more employees are required to provide up to 56 hours of paid sick and safe leave. The state law also permits employees to use sick leave as it is accrued, without the 90-day waiting period post-hire provided under the county law.
Employers may cap annual usage at the amount of one year’s accrual (40 or 56 hours), and provisions in the state law related to minimum increments for taking leave, limiting medical inquiries, the absence of any obligation to payout accrued, unused days upon termination, and prohibiting retaliation are all consistent with existing Westchester law.
The New York State law adds some new requirements for employers. In particular, upon an employee’s request, the employer must, within three business days, provide a summary of the amounts of sick and safe leave accrued and used by the employee in the current and/or any previous calendar year. Under section 195 of the New York Labor Law, employers must retain such records for six years.
Westchester County’s paid sick leave is intended to be used for an employee’s or family member’s illness, injury or need for medical treatment or preventive care, and also when businesses, schools or day care centers are closed due to a public health emergency. Westchester County has a separate safe leave law, requiring 40 hours of paid safe leave for employees who are victims of domestic violence or human trafficking. The New York State paid sick and safe time law covers essentially the same medical absence reasons as the county law, but it does not provide for leave in the event of a public health emergency and it merges the concept of “safe” leave in the event an employee or employee’s family member is the victim of domestic violence, a family offense, sexual offense, stalking, or human trafficking. These discrepancies in coverage may create complications for employers tracking leave usage under both the state and county laws, and neither the state nor the county have yet issued any regulations or FAQs on reconciling inconsistencies between the respective leave law requirements.
Westchester County employers should revisit their existing paid sick leave policies to ensure they comply with the provisions of the New York State law.
0 Comments