Following pressure from business leaders, Governor Baker signed an emergency bill (S 2255) on June 13th to delay the start of employer and employee contributions to the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program by three months. The new effective date is October 1, 2019. This delay will allow covered employers more time to prepare for the PFML.
In response to the three-month delay, the Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) has adjusted the total contribution rate from 0.63% to 0.75% of employee qualifying earnings. This increase will make up for the months of lost contributions to ensure that full funding will be in place for the commencement of benefit payments in January 2021.
The DFML has also extended the deadline for distributing written notices. Employers now have until September 30, 2019 to notify all covered individuals of their rights and obligations under PFML. The notices have been revised to reflect the new contribution rates and effective date. Employers that provided notices to their employees or contractors prior to the delay announcement must provide an additional notice explaining the new program changes. These notices can be found on our Free Labor Law Compliance Postings webpage. The mandatory workplace posting has also been revised to reflect the new start date for required PFML contributions. CPC is in the process of updating all Massachusetts products with the revised PFML posting. Customers that received the PFML Peel ‘N PostTM or the 062019 Massachusetts All-On-OneTM Labor Law Poster before the delay announcement will receive an updated PFML Peel ‘N PostTM with the current posting version in the next few weeks.
CPC will continue to monitor the PFML program for further developments. Employers are encouraged to review the final regulations to ensure they are prepared for the new law, and if necessary seek advice from counsel for further direction.
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