According to our latest count, there are five states and more than 20 major localities across the country that now have enacted laws that require covered employers to allow employees to accrue anywhere from 24 to 56 hours of paid sick leave per year and use those hours for their own illnesses as well as to take care of family members. For employers who operate on a multi-state basis, this translates into a growing patchwork of new state and local requirements that can differ from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.
Even for companies that are federal contractors covered by President Obama’s 2015 Executive Order 13706 mandating paid sick leave, variations in state and local laws where they do business can result in different obligations. At this point in time, there is little chance that Congress will approve a federal paid sick leave law, meaning that the action is likely to continue at the state and local level.
Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.