The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office has issued final regulations regarding the new Massachusetts Earned Sick Time Law approved by voters last November. The final regulations include many needed clarifications and several employer-friendly provisions intended to allow employers to address employee fraud.

Summary of the Law

As a reminder, employers must provide all employees, including part-time, seasonal, and temporary employees, one hour of sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. Employers with 11 or more employees must provide paid sick time; employers with fewer than 11 employees must provide unpaid sick time. The law permits employees to take sick leave for the following purposes:

(1) An employee’s own physical or mental illness or injury that requires care;
(2) To care for the employee’s immediate family member suffering from physical or mental illness or injury;
(3) For the employee’s own or employee’s immediate family member’s attendance at routine medical appointments; or
(4) To address the psychological, physical, or legal effects of domestic violence against the employee or the employee’s child.

Summary of the Final Regulations
I have summarized below some of the most significant new provisions and/or changes in the final regulations.
1. Sick Leave Runs Concurrently with Other Leaves: The proposed regulations had stated that earned sick time was “in addition” to other forms of leave. However, the final regulations provide that sick time can run concurrently with other forms of required leave (the Family Medical Leave Act, the Massachusetts Parental Leave Act, the Massachusetts Domestic Violence Leave Act, the Massachusetts Small Necessities Leave Act, and other leave laws) that allow employers to require concurrent use of leave for the same purposes. Employees may choose to use, or employers may require employees to use, concurrent earned paid sick time, as provided under the Earned Sick Time Law, to receive pay when taking other statutorily-authorized leave that otherwise would be unpaid (to the extent allowed by other leave laws). For example, if an employee is out on medical leave to care for their own illness under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the employer can require that the employees Earned Sick Time be used at the same time.
Important Note: Although the regulations say that employers may require employees to use sick time if taking those types of leave, the Parental Leave Act specifically states that used sick time is the employee’s choice, so employers shouldn’t require the exhaustion of sick time during Massachusetts Parental Leave.
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Small business owners will on July 1, be faced with new regulations regarding sick time rules.  Passed by voters in a ballot measure last fall, the law requires that companies with 11 or more employees give workers up to 40 hours of paid sick time a year.  Those with fewer than 11 may offer it unpaid.  The law applied to all employees, including part-time and seasonal workers.  Seasonal workers such as landscapers to restaurant staff may be greatly impacted by the new law.  The full details of the law are not due until June 19, which only gives employees two weeks to accommodate the changes.  Smaller companies may now need to think about newer ways to track time which may mean different or more sophisticated payroll systems.  The original intent of the legislation was to help single mothers and parents worried about losing their jobs. or a day’s pay, if they have to take a child to a doctor’s appointment.  This may be legislations where the current provisions of the bill do not meet the unique needs of the employers.  Employers also need to think about sick time accruals.  The law requires that workers get an hour of sick time per 30 hours worked, including overtime.  Most companies calculate sick time per pay period.  Some companies lump sick and personal time together.  The law now requires that they track them separately.  The law also provides for sick time to be carried over with one major adjustment for seasonal operations–such as summer ice cream scoopers who work a few days a week–from carrying over sick time if they don’t return to work for more than six months.   For many small business owners this new legislation could have a huge impact on overall profitability.