New Paid Sick Leave Law in California
On September 10, 2014, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law AB 1522, requiring a minimum of three paid sick days per year for employees who work 30 or more days in a calendar year. Under the law, workers may accumulate one hour of sick time for every 30 hours they work, to be capped at three days per year at the employers’ option. The new bill sets minimum standards and specifically allows employers to be more generous with paid sick leave. New employees will be allowed to use their accrued sick days after 90 days of employment. Cities throughout the nation, including San Francisco and Seattle, have enacted similar regulations; however, California is only the second state behind Connecticut to enact such a law at the state level. The bill does not apply to airline flight crews, employees subject to collective bargaining agreements, or in-home health care providers. Proponents of the law (which is also called the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014) argue that the new bill will have a positive effect on the health of Californians by allowing sick employees paid time off to care for themselves without financial pressure, thus reducing recovery time and reducing the prospect of spreading sickness to others. Opponents argue that this new law will be…