SB 881: Paid Sick Days

Senate Bill 881 by Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil (D-Jackson) to deal with paid sick days. Previously a bill by Senator Glazer dealing with worker classification, SB 881 would amend Labor Code Sections 246 and 248.5.

Section 1 of the bill would amend Labor Code Section 246 to change the accrual method used by employers to ensure that an employee has no less than 40 hours (rather than 24) of accrued sick leave or paid time off by the 200^th calendar day (rather than 120^th) of employment or each calendar year. In addition, it would allow an employer to satisfy the accrual requirements by providing an employee no less than 40 hours (rather than 24 hours) or five days (rather than three days) of paid sick leave by the time of the employee’s 200^th calendar day.

And, it would allow an employer to cap accrued paid sick days to 40 hours (rather than 24 hours) or five days (rather than three days) in each year of employment. The increase to forty hours or five days in each year of employment per 12-month period would begin January 1, 2026. An employer could also cap an employee’s total accrual of paid sick leave at 80 hours (rather than 48 hours) or 10 days (rather than 6 days).

The bill would also require paid sick time for nonexempt employees to be paid “at the employee’s base rate of pay” (rather than “calculated in the same manner as the regular rate of pay for the workweek in which the employee uses paid sick time, whether or not the employee actually works overtime in that workweek”).

The bill would also add additional provisions to this section of Labor Code. First, if an employee uses paid sick leave, an employer may request that an employee provide a written statement signed by the employee stating that the employee was absent from work for a reason specified. In addition, if an employee uses paid sick leave on three or more consecutive work days, an employer may request that an employee provide reasonable written documentation demonstrating that the employee was absent from work for a reason specified. And, an employer would not be in violation of this section if the employer denies leave based on a determination that the verification or documentation provided is false.

Finally, on or after January 1, 2024, a county, city, or municipality would be prohibited from adopting any ordinance, resolution, law, rule, or regulation or amend any such ordinance, resolution, law, rule, or regulation regarding paid sick leave other than related to COVID-19-specific paid sick leave. Moreover, this section would preempt any existing local ordinance, resolution, law, rule, or regulation regarding earned sick leave, other than local ordinances regarding COVID-19-specific sick leave, including any local ordinance that requires an employer to provide a number of paid sick days in excess of what is required by this section.

Section 2 of the bill would amend Labor Code Section 248.5 to provide that this article would not be enforced by the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA).