Cities and Counties Requiring Paid Sick Leave Above and Beyond Federal Limits
The federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) requires most businesses with fewer than 500 employees to provide emergency paid sick leave benefits for workers affected by COVID-19. For example, covered employers must provide 80 hours of paid sick leave for full-time employees and two weeks of average hours worked for part-time employees who cannot work or telework for any one of six COVID-19 related reasons. See, Federal Coronavirus Workplace Relief (March 23, 2020).
With the pandemic persisting in California, local governments continue to issue emergency ordinances for workers to supplement FFCRA benefits. Since our initial posting — Paid Sick Leave Going Viral (May 29, 2020) — we count two more California cities and one county joining the list.
To our knowledge, and as of July 22, 2020:
| City or County | Covered Employers | Effective Date | Expiration Date | Other Resources |
| Emeryville* | All employers regardless of size | April 1, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | Emeryville’s website |
| Long Beach | Private employers with 500 or more employees nationwide. | May 19, 2020 | Until further notice | Long Beach’s website |
| Los Angeles* | Private employers with 500 or more employees within the city, or 2,000 or more nationwide. | May 29, 2020 | Until two calendar weeks after the expiration of the COVID19 local emergency period | City of Los Angeles’ rules and regulations |
| Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas) | Private employers with 500 or more employees nationwide. | April 28, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | Los Angeles County’s website |
| Oakland | Private employers regardless of size (except for those with fewer than 50 employees between February 3, 2020 and March 4, 2020). | May 12, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | Oakland’s website |
| Sacramento | All employers with 500 or more employees nationwide. | July 15, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | Sacramento City’s website |
| City of San Diego* | All employers regardless of size | April 28, 2020 | Until further notice | San Diego’s website |
| San Francisco City and County | Private employers with 500 or more employees worldwide. | April 17, 2020 | Until further notice | San Francisco’s FAQs |
| San Jose | Private employers with 500 or more employees and small businesses of 50 or fewer. | April 7, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | San Jose’s Notice |
| San Mateo County | Private employers with 500 or more employees within the United States. | July 8, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | San Mateo County’s FAQs |
| Santa Rosa | All private employers regardless of size. | July 7, 2020 | December 31, 2020 | Santa Rosa City’s website |
*Ordinances for the cities of Emeryville, Los Angeles and San Diego require employers to allow covered employees to use any accrued sick leave benefits for COVID-19 related reasons.
California has issued a statewide April 16, 2020 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Order (and mandatory poster) for food sector employers with 500 or more employees.
Please check the above links and other online resources for any updates.
See also:
- Summer Pandemic Pay – FFCRA Paid Leave Eligibility for Youth Program Closure (July 9, 2020)
- COVID-19, I Presume – Workers Compensation Coverage for Diagnosed Workers(May 20, 2020)
- It’s a Wash – COVID 19 Paid Leave and Tax Credits (April 9, 2020)
- COVID-19 Gets Noticed (April 1, 2020)
For more information about these laws or other employment issues related to COVID-19, contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
Cindy Bamforth
July 23, 2020