Premium Joomla Template by HostMonster Reviews

Fact Sheet: AB 1522 Paid Sick Leave Mandate 

l (800) 331-8877 or visit
AB 1522, the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act (Gonzalez, D-San Diego) imposes a new obligation on virtually all California employers to furnish employees with paid sick leave.  The purpose of AB 1522 is to prevent ill workers from working, spreading sickness to coworkers and to customers with whom they may come into contact, and to facilitate workers seeking medical treatment and attending to a variety of other personal needs.

Who is covered by AB 1522?

       All employers with employees in California will be required to offer paid sick leave by AB 1522; no exceptions for employer coverage are provided in the bill.
       All employees, except those covered by a collective bargaining agreement providing for sick leave, and a few others, are covered.

What Does AB 1522 Do?

       An employee working on or after July 1, 2015, in California for 30 days or more within a year of beginning employment will accrue paid sick leave at a rate of one hour for every thirty hours worked.
       Employees begin accrual of paid sick leave on July 1, 2015
       Hours of service for accrual purposes are counted beginning on the first day of employment.
       Overtime-exempt professional, executive or managerial employees are deemed to work 40 hours per week.
       Employers may limit total accrual of paid sick leave to 48 hours or 6 days.
        An employee who separates from an employer is not entitled to payment for accrued but unused paid sick leave, but the employer must reinstate accrued but unused sick leave if the employee is rehired within one year.

How Will AB 1522 Work?

       An employee will be entitled to use any accrued but unused paid sick leave.
       Employees are entitled to use paid sick leave beginning on the 90th day of employment and may use sick leave as it is accrued.
       Employers are required to grant paid sick leave upon an oral or written request for diagnosis, treatment or care for the employee or employee’s family member (spouse, registered domestic partner, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, grandchild) or a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.

        An employee may carry over accrued but unused sick leave to the following year;
       An employer may limit annual use of paid sick leave to 24 hours or 3 days.
       An employer may limit total accrual of paid sick leave to 48 hours or 6 days.
       An employer may not require an employee to provide a substitute as a condition of using paid sick leave.
       Sick leave is paid at the employee’s usual rate of pay; salaried employees are paid at the rate determined by dividing their salary by the number of hours worked.
       Paid sick leave must be paid by the payday for the next payroll period after the sick leave was used.
       The employee determines how much sick leave is required, but the employer may set a minimum increment of two hours for use of leave.
       An employee’s existing sick leave or paid-time-off policy need not be revised to comply with AB 1522 if it furnishes at least the same minimum amount of sick leave as required by AB 1522.

Complying with AB 1522

       Employers are required to post in a conspicuous place information about the paid sick leave mandate and furnish employees with a revised version of the new hire disclosure required by Labor Code §226 including information about the requirements of AB 1522.
       DLSE has issued templates of both the poster and notice illustrating the proper information and format; employers are not required to use the DLSE documents, but their documents must convey the same information.
       An employer is prohibited from denying leave or taking an adverse employment action or discriminating against an employee seeking to use paid sick leave.
       An employer must keep records of hours worked and sick leave accrued for three years and shall make these records available to the Labor Commissioner for inspection.
       The Labor Commissioner may order reinstatement, back pay, payment of sick days unlawfully withheld, and administrative penalties.