As we reported yesterday, California’s legislature enacted Assembly Bill 84 on Monday; the state’s Senate enacted the law’s counterpart the same day, Senate Bill 114. The new statute sought to reestablish statewide supplemental COVID-19 sick leave requirements, and imposes significant obligations on employers. Earlier today, Gov. Newsom signed the bill into law.
The new sick leave requirements will be set forth in Labor Code sections 248.6 and 248.7, and the requirement to provide up to 80 hours of supplemental sick leave applies retroactively back to January 1st. Fortunately for employers, the obligation to provide information regarding sick leave on employees’ wage statements (or concurrently therewith) does not take effect until the first full pay period after the new law’s enactment. However, because employers must now provide information regarding employees’ supplemental sick leave usage, employers should ensure that they have accurate records going back to the beginning of the year.
We anticipate that the Labor Commissioner’s office will issue FAQs regarding the new law, as it did in the past.