COVID-19

Federal COVID-19 specific laws & guidance:

• FAQ: Pregnancy, COVID-19, & Your Workplace Rights
• EEOC Issues Guidance for the ADA & Pandemic Preparations in the Workplace
• Analysis of The Families First Coronavirus Response Act and the CARES Act* (*Laws expired, December 2020)

Paid leave for vaccination:

• Know Your Rights: COVID-19 Vaccination Leave

• FAQs on State and Local Paid Sick Time Laws

• Guide to applying for paid leave benefits for New Yorkers

15 states, Washington D.C., and dozens of localities guarantee workers a right to paid sick time. ‘Closure provisions‘ in the laws in many jurisdictions also enable workers to stay home to protect their health and their families during times of public health emergencies.

For the full list of permanent paid sick time laws and an FAQ on each law, see below.

States:

• Alaska (passed; not yet in effect)
• Arizona*
• California
• Colorado (en español) * (flyer/en español)
• Connecticut
• District of Columbia
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan*
• Minnesota*
• Missouri (passed; not yet in effect)
• Nebraska (passed; not yet in effect)
• New Jersey*
• New Mexico
• New York State (en español)
• Oregon*
• Rhode Island*
• Washington State*
• Vermont*

*laws have ‘closure provisions’ that enable you to use paid sick time when your workplace or child’s school is closed

Counties & Cities:

• California: Berkeley  | Emeryville | Los Angeles | Oakland | San Diego* | San Francisco | Santa Monica 
• Illinois: Chicago*
• Maryland: Montgomery County* 
• Minnesota: Bloomington*  | Minneapolis* | Saint Paul* 
• New York: New York City* (en español) 
• Pennsylvania: Philadelphia | Pittsburgh* | Allegheny County*
• Washington State: Seattle* | Tacoma* 

*laws have ‘closure provisions’ that enable you to use paid sick time when your workplace or child’s school is closed

To compare the statewide and local paid sick time laws above, please see A Better Balance’s interactive and customizable comparison chart.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020, states, cities, and counties throughout the U.S. acted to protect workers affected by the virus by enacting emergency paid sick leave policies. A Better Balance was proud to support many of these efforts, including on-the-ground work that we helped to lead in New York and Colorado. A chart of emergency paid sick leave orders, measures, and orders (the majority of which have now expired) is still available here.

13 states and Washington, D.C. have enacted paid family and medical leave laws. These laws may enable you to take longer-term, job-protected paid leave to care for a seriously ill loved one or your own medical condition when affected by COVID-19. 

To learn more about these rights, visit our Comparative Chart of Paid Family and Medical Leave Laws in the United States.

We are working with states and local governments across the country as they seek to enact emergency paid sick time and other workplace health and safety measures to address this crisis. We will update this page with information about those laws are they are enacted.

We have also developed key principles and model emergency sick time laws that could help address access to sick time in your jurisdiction:

• Paid Sick Time During a Public Health Emergency: Key Policy Elements to Include in an Emergency Paid Sick Time Bill
• Model Law: Establishing a Permanent Right to Paid Sick and Safe Time that Includes Additional Leave for a Public Health Emergency (2020)
• Model Law: Establishing Paid Sick Time Leave for a Public Health Emergency (2020)

We have also developed a blueprint for state and local governments in the South to protect the health and economic security of workers and families:

• Policy Recommendations for Southern State and Local Governments to Respond to COVID-19

On  January 6, 2022, the U.S. Treasury Department released its final rule on the state and local American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds and confirmed that creating, expanding, or financially supporting paid sick time, paid family leave, and paid medical leave are permissible uses of these funds. Learn more in our fact sheet: 

• Fact Sheet: American Rescue Plan State and Local Funds Can Be Used for Paid Leave

We have also developed with the National Employment Law Project (NELP) and Economic Policy Institute (EPI) model policies to guarantee premium pay, paid sick days, COVID-19 worker health and safety, and protection against retaliation:

• How Local Governments Can Improve Workplace Standards for Frontline Workers During COVID-19 and Beyond
• Appendix: Suggestions for Using American Rescue Plan Funds to Implement Model Policies for Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic.