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California Sick Leave Law: Are You Ready for 2015?

New California Sick Leave Law for 2015California-sick-leave-law

There are a number of new employment laws for 2015 as Governor Brown has signed 930 employment related bills from the California 2014 legislative session. As an employer, you need to familiarize yourself with new laws that will affect your day-to-day operations and policies for the next calendar year.

Many of the new laws make minor changes to the existing law, or only impact specific industries. Some of the new laws, however, such as mandatory paid sick leave, significantly change existing state law and will have a profound impact on many employer’s internal policies and practices.

As of September 10th, California became only the second state in the nation to provide paid sick leave with the signing of the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014

Here are some highlights of the new California sick leave law, AB1522, known as the the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014:

  • It adds eight new sections to the Labor Code and amends a ninth section, contains detailed recordkeeping and notice requirements, including a new poster requirement, provides penalties for noncompliance.
  • The Act applies to all private and public employers regardless of size; small employers are not exempt.
  • All employees who have worked in California for 30 or more days within a year from the beginning of their employment will be entitled to paid sick days under the Act.
  • Part-time and full-time employees are covered as well as exempt and non-exempt employees.
  • The new law requires employers to provide paid sick leave to any employee who worked in California for 30 days at an accrual rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked.
  • Employers are allowed to limit an employee’s use of paid sick leave to 24 hours or three days in each year of employment and put a maximum cap on total accrual of 48 hours or six days.
  • The effective date for employers to begin providing the paid sick leave benefit is July 1, 2015.
  • Accrued paid sick days can carry over to the following year of employment, just like vacation. But, an employer can limit the amount of paid sick days an employee can use in each year of employment to 24 hours every three days.
  • Some types of employees are not covered under the Act and are limited to the following four groups:
    • Employees covered by a union contract that specifically provides for paid sick leave, has binding arbitration, and meets other specified requirements
    • Construction employees covered by a valid union contract
    • State providers of in-home supportive services under certain sections of the Welfare and Institutions Code
    • Certain air carrier employees

The 2014 California legislative session produced a number of new regulations

Compliance by employers, especially with issues such as California sick leave law requirements, means having an ongoing and up-to-date process for tracking, understanding, and implementing the provisions of these laws.

There are a number of resources that can assist with this process such as CalChamber’s HRCalifornia site. A good payroll management services company that also provides Human Resources and Insurances services, such as Accuchex Payroll Management Services, is a great option to consider.

Get your Free Download: Payroll Outsourcing Guide to help you make an informed decision or call Accuchex Payroll Management Services at 877-422-2824.

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