San Francisco Voters Approved New Public Health Emergency Leave


In June, San Francisco voters passed Proposition G, a new Public Health Emergency Leave Ordinance. The ordinance requires private employers to provide paid leave to employees for “public health emergencies.” The leave ordinance will be in addition to employer-provided paid leave, such as paid sick leave.

The leave ordinance will become operative on October 1, 2022.

Covered Employers

The new leave applies to private employers with more than 100 employees worldwide.

Covered Employees

The leave requirement applies to all employees who perform work within the City and County of San Francisco for covered employers.

Reasons for Leave

A Covered employee may use Public Health Emergency Leave during a public health emergency if the employee is unable to work due to any of the following:

Amount of Leave

Starting on October 1, 2022, and then at the start of each year, employers must provide up to 80 hours of paid leave for Public Health Emergency Leave. Full-time employees or employees on a fixed schedule, must receive an amount equal to the hours they regularly work in a two-week period. For employees with a variable schedule, the ordinance provides two methods of calculating amount required.

Notice Requirement

Employers are required to post a notice that will be developed by the San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement. To date, the required notice has not been posted.


Jackson Lewis P.C. © 2025
National Law Review, Volume XII, Number 196