Back in March 2020, many cities and counties (including Los Angeles) started passing ordinances to provide 80 Hours of Supplemental Sick Leave to employees not covered by the FFCRA (Families First Coronavirus Response Act). The FFCRA applied only to businesses with 500 or less employees, so various cities were filling the gaps. As reported here, the FFCRA and all of those local ordinances expired on December 31, 2020.
But alas, to keep everyone guessing, various cities/counties in California are starting to reinstate the Supplemental Sick Leave requirements, one at a time, and retroactive to January 1st. The County of Los Angeles, was the latest to jump into the fray, requiring its unincorporated cities to continue to provide 80 Hours of Supplemental Sick Leave to anyone eligible now who didn’t take it in 2020. And now, it applies regardless of the number of employees (i.e. it no longer simply fills the FFCRA gap of 500+). It is still capped at $511 per day and $5,110 in the aggregate.
Other cities with similar reinstated supplemental sick leave ordinances include Oakland, Sacramento, Santa Clara, and San Mateo.
What’s next?
Expect other cities throughout California, especially in southern California, to follow.
If you haven’t tracked who took Supplemental Sick Leave in 2020, to know who is still eligible to take it going forward, it is time to do so. Plus, if there were employees eligible for this paid time off who didn’t receive it in January 2021, consider paying it retroactively, and reinstating the banks for any other type of paid time off taken instead (i.e. making those employees whole).
Also, pay attention to the evolving requirements in your city/county on this issue, and keep reading our blog for more updates likely to follow!