Employees in the city of New York are now earning a full week of paid sick leave annually.
Under a new law that went into effect on April 1, companies with five or more employees must provide employees up to 40 hours paid time off to care for their own illness or health care or to care for a sick family member. Employers with less than five employees must provide unpaid sick leave. Also, domestic workers are entitled to two days paid days off per year.
The law applies to employees employed for hire within the City of New York for more than 80 hours a calendar year, regardless of where the employee lives or the business is located. The effective law is more expansive than the initial version of the sick leave law passed last year that would have affected only businesses with 15 or more workers.
The law requires employers to provide each employee with a written Notice of Employee Rights on a form developed by the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA). The Notice describes the employee’s right to sick leave, including accrual and use of sick leave, the right to file a complaint, and the right to be free from retaliation, and specifies the employer’s calendar year. Employees have a right to receive the notice in English and their primary language.
Deadlines for providing employees with the Notice are:
- Existing employees (employed before April 1, 2014): Must get Notice by May 1.
- New employees (first employed on or after April 1, 2014): Must get Notice on first day of employment.
Employers can download the Notice in the following languages:
Although employers are required to comply with the law effective April 1, additional rules for implementing the law, including a posting of notice proposal, are still in development.