Taking time off when you or your loved ones are unwell should not add to your stress. California law is designed to let you earn and use sick leave without fear of losing pay or your job. In 2024 and beyond, the state has strengthened its paid sick leave rules, and other laws provide longer job protected leave and wage replacement when you need it.
Who Is Covered by California’s Paid Sick Leave Law?
Most California workers, including part time and temporary employees, are entitled to paid sick leave if they work at least 30 days within a year for the same employer. A few categories are excluded, such as some in home supportive services workers and certain air carrier employees.
Earning and Using Paid Sick Leave
Accrual vs. Up Front Grants
California employers can choose between two approaches:
- Accrual plans. You earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Employers must ensure you have at least 24 hours (three days) of leave by your 120th day of employment and 40 hours (five days) by your 200th day. You can carry over unused time, but employers may cap accrual at 80 hours or 10 days.
- Up front grants. Employers may front load the full 40 hours at the start of each year or employment anniversary, making the time available immediately.
Qualifying Reasons to Take Leave
You can use paid sick leave for your own or a family member’s diagnosis, care, or treatment of an existing health condition, or preventive care. Family members include children of any age, parents (including parents in law), spouses, registered domestic partners, grandparents, grandchildren, and siblings.
No Doctor’s Note Needed for Paid Sick Leave
The law clearly states that an employer may not deny paid sick leave solely because you do not provide a doctor’s note. A request for leave can be oral or written and must be granted right away. Employers may ask for documentation only if they have a reasonable suspicion that the leave is being misused. If your employer uses a standardized form (often called a doctor’s note template), your healthcare provider can complete it, but the state law doesn’t require documentation just to use paid sick leave.
Pay and Record Keeping
Your sick leave pay equals your regular rate of pay. Employers must pay for sick leave no later than the next regular payroll date and must show your available sick time on your pay stub. Unused sick leave cannot be cashed out unless your employer’s policy allows it.
Longer Leave Under CFRA and FMLA
During CFRA or FMLA leave your employer must continue your health insurance, and you are entitled to return to your same or a comparable job. Medical certification may be required to show that you or your family member has a serious health condition. Such certification usually takes the form of a doctor’s note to return to work after an extended leave or a form completed by a healthcare provider.
Wage Replacement Through Paid Family Leave (PFL)
California’s Paid Family Leave (PFL) program supplements the unpaid job protected leave provided by CFRA and FMLA. PFL provides up to eight weeks of partial wage replacement benefits to workers who need to bond with a new child, care for a seriously ill family member, or participate in a qualifying military event. You do not have to take all eight weeks at once, you can spread the time over a 12 month period.
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