New California Paid Sick Time Law

Governor Brown recently signed a bill to provide paid sick time to California workers. The bill grants covered employees up to 24 hours paid sick time per year to care for themselves or their family members. Most California employees are covered under the new law with some exceptions for flight crews, certain union members, and in-home supportive service care workers.

Employees begin accruing sick time after 90 days of employment at a rate of one hour per every 30 hours worked. Unlike PTO or vacation time, sick time accrued under the law is not paid out at the end of employment. The law creates a minimum standard, so that if an employer’s existing PTO and sick time plan already provides for more than the new law, it is not obligated to change its plan or provide additional sick pay.

Employees are protected from retaliation for opposing employer practices related to paid sick time, filing complaints with the labor commissioner, or participating in investigations about paid sick leave. The law will be enforced by the labor commissioner or the attorney general.

The text of the new bill may be found here.