Amendment Category

ESSTA

NYSSLL

Employer Size: 4 or fewer employees and employer net income of less than $1 million

Up to 40 hours of unpaid safe and sick leave

Same

Employer Size: 4 or fewer employees and employer net income greater than $1 million

Or

Employers with 11 to 99 employees irrespective of net income

Up to 40 hours of paid safe and sick leave

Same

Employer Size: Employers with 100 or more employees irrespective of net income

Up to 56 hours of paid safe and sick leave

Same

Use Provisions

Employers must begin to allow employees to accrue 1 hour of safe/sick time for every 30 hours worked up to the thresholds above, beginning on September 30, 2020. Employers do not have to allow employees to use such hours until January 1, 2021. Employers may also elect to front-load all time.

Same

Carryover

Employees are permitted to carry over unused safe and sick leave to the next calendar year unless the employer provides full-time employees with the appropriate hours of safe and sick leave at the beginning of the calendar year.

Unused sick leave must be carried over to the following year.

Waiting Period

Employees can use leave immediately as it accrues.

Same

Summary of Accrued/Used Time

“The amount of safe/sick time accrued and used during a pay period and an employee’s total balance of accrued safe/sick time shall be noted on a pay statement or other form of written documentation provided to the employee each pay period.” This provision will not be enforced until November 30, 2020.

Employees may request in writing or verbally that an employer provide a summary of the amount of sick leave accrued and used by the employee, which the employer must provide within three business days of the request.

Notice

Employers must provide written notice of employee rights at commencement of employment, or for current employees, within 30 days of the effective date of the local law (i.e., October 30, 2020).

Currently, the law is unclear on whether there is an affirmative notice obligation.

Posting

Employers must conspicuously post the notice of employee rights at the “employer’s place of business in an area accessible to employees.”

Currently, the law is unclear on whether there is an affirmative posting obligation.

Reimbursement

Employers are required to reimburse employees for reasonable fees/costs/expenses for obtaining supporting documentation from doctors or other third parties as requested by the employer.

Currently, the law is unclear on whether there is a reimbursement requirement.

Retaliation

Employers may not take any adverse action against an employee for exercising or attempting to exercise rights under this law. Adverse actions have been expanded to include, but are not limited to:

• “maintenance or application of an absence control policy that counts protected leave for safe/sick time as an absence that may lead to or result in an adverse action”; and

• “actions related to perceived immigration status or work authorization.”

Employees have a right to reinstatement and protections against retaliation for exercising rights or requesting leave.

Enforcement

The City of New York can bring civil litigation in court or in an administrative investigation against an employer for violating any provision of the law.

Currently, the law is unclear on the specific enforcement mechanisms.

Penalties

Fines for employer violations include penalties ranging from $500 to $2,500.

Civil penalties are capped at $15,000 in a civil action “for a finding that an employer has engaged in a pattern or practice of violations.”

Currently, the law is unclear on whether there are specific penalties.