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New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio recently signed into law a bill (Intro 2032-A) that amends the city's paid sick leave requirements to align with New York state's recently enacted paid sick leave law. New York City has had a paid sick leave law in place since April 2014. (News release, New York City mayor's office, September 28, 2020.)

As we reported, New York state fiscal year 2021 budget legislation (SB 7506B, Part J) establishes a statewide paid sick leave law that requires employers to: (1) allow employees to begin accruing sick leave effective September 30, 2020, and (2) begin providing accrued sick leave to employees effective January 1, 2021. (EY Tax Alert 2020-1578, 6-16-2020.)

According to the mayor's news release, "the law expands paid safe and sick leave to employees of small businesses with four or fewer employees and a net income of more than $1 million. This legislation also expands paid leave for workers at the largest businesses; those with 100 or more employees must now provide up to 56 hours of paid sick leave. It also brings domestic workers in line with other private sector workers by allowing them to accrue and use leave the same as other private sector workers."

Modified paid sick leave law provisions

As is the case for employees under New York state's paid sick leave law, effective September 30, 2020, New York City's law requires that:

• Employers with four or fewer employees allow employees to accrue up to 40 hours of unpaid sick leave (unpaid sick leave converts to paid sick leave if the employer had a net income of greater than $1 million in the previous tax year)
• Employers of five to 99 employees allow employees to accrue up to 40 hours of paid sick leave
• Employers of 100 or more employees allow employees to accrue up to 56 hours of paid sick leave

Effective January 1, 2021, employees newly covered under the amendments must be allowed to use their accrued sick leave.

Further, effective September 30, 2020, New York City employers must:

• Provide domestic workers with 40 hours of paid safe and sick leave
• Allow employees to use safe and sick leave as it is accrued
• Reimburse employees who must pay for required documentation after three consecutive workdays of leave
• List on employees' paystubs (or any document issued each pay period) the amounts of accrued and used leave and the total balance of accrued leave

See the New York City website for more details on requirements for paid sick leave in New York City. The city is in the process of updating its website and employee notices to reflect the amended law. Employers may contact the City at OLPS@dca.nyc.gov with additional questions.

Ernst & Young LLP insights

New York also has a paid family leave program, which is funded by employee payroll deductions and provides eligible employees with job-protected paid time off to bond with a new child, care for a family member with a serious health condition and assist loved ones when a family member is deployed abroad on active military service.

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