Healey publishes final sick time regulations
Attorney General Maura Healey has issued final regulations implementing the new earned sick time law, providing guidance to Bay State employers on the mandate, which will take effect on July 1.
The Earned Sick Time Law was passed by voters on the November ballot, and requires all Massachusetts employers to allow full- and part-time employees to accrue sick time. Employers with 11 or more employees must provide paid sick time, while those with fewer than 11 employees are allowed to provide unpaid sick leave.
“Nearly one million of our most vulnerable, lowest-paid workers will no longer need to worry about whether they can afford to take a day off if they are sick or to care for a loved one,” Healey said in a statement.
According to Healey’s office, nearly one in three Massachusetts workers, the majority of whom work in low-wage jobs, don’t currently have access to sick leave or any paid time off.
The final regulations were formed using feedback from employers and workers during 11 public hearings and listening sessions across the state. Healey’s office said it received more than 75 formal comments on the law. Regulations are available on the Attorney General’s website.
According to Healey’s office, the final regulations include clarifications and adjustments to provisions regarding the accrual, use and payment of earned sick time, employer size, notice requirements, and rules for requiring medical documentation. They appear to address employers’ concerns about potential misuse of sick leave by stipulating that employees can’t accept shifts with the intention of calling out sick, and that they can’t use sick time as an excuse to be late for work.
The regulations also safeguard against workers taking time off before or after weekends or holidays as a matter of course and without explanation.
The final regulations also clarify when employees can make up time instead of using it, and how employers with existing sick time policies can keep their plans while also complying with the new law.
Included in the regulations is a Safe Harbor provision for employers who already offer paid time off policies; those employers have until Jan. 1, 2016 to comply with the law, as long as full-time employees have the right to earn and use at least 30 hours of paid time off in the 2015 calendar year. Part-time and temporary workers must also be allowed to accrue paid time off at the same rate, beginning July 1.
Massachusetts joins California and Connecticut as the only states with earned sick time laws.
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