Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 616 amending the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act increasing the number of Paid Sick Leave afforded to employees in California from three (3) days/twenty-four (24) hours to no less than five (5) days/forty (40) hours per year. The new bill will go into effect January 1, 2024.

The increase in Paid Sick Leave means the carryover/caps provisions increase as well. Existing law requires accrued paid sick days to carry over to the following year of employment up to three (3) days/twenty-four (24) hours each year. This means the accrual caps at 6 days/48 hours.

SB 616 will raise the employer’s authorized amount of carryover sick leave to 40 hours or 5 days in each year of employment. The new cap would be 10 days/80 hours. Employers can limit the amount used per year to 40 hours/5 days.

Under current law, this provision of the law is satisfied if the full leave amount is received at the beginning of employment and each year thereafter. 

Employers with employees in jurisdictions that do not have local sick leave ordinances in place that meet the minimum provisions of SB 616 will need to comply.

Employers should review their current sick leave benefits to ensure they meet the minimum requirement of this provision. To do so, review and update your policy and handbook or other communication regarding your sick leave benefits. Make certain your managers are aware of the changes, especially if they are managing time-off requests.

For more information contact your Risk Advisor.