Beginning January 1, 2023, employees throughout California will be able to use sick leave or take leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) to care for a “designated person.”  Under Assembly Bill (AB) 1041, a designated person is defined as any individual related by blood or whose association with the employee is equivalent to a family relationship. An employee can designate this person at the time they request leave.  An employer can limit an employee to one person in a 12-month period as the employee’s designated person. 

Employers with employees working in locales with local paid sick leave ordinances will need to evaluate the need for revisions to policies and procedures. Some local paid sick ordinances already allow the use of sick leave to care for a designated person and provide a process for making such designations.