HB 544 – Healthy Families and Workplaces/Paid Sick Days
Primary Sponsors: Rep. Susan Fisher (D – Buncombe), Rep. Jean Farmer-Butterfield (D – Pitt), Rep. Carla Cunningham (D – Mecklenburg), Rep. Verla Insko (D – Orange)
SB 556 – Healthy Families and Workplaces/Paid Sick Days
Primary Sponsors: Sen. Angela Bryant (D -Nash), Sen. Gladys Robinson (D – Guilford), Sen. Valerie Foushee (D – Orange)
This bill was filed jointly in the House and Senate.
The goal of this bill is to secure the health and safety needs of employees and their families, and the protection of employees from losing their jobs and pay while they seek medical care for themselves and their family members.
Paid Sick Time
This bill would require paid sick time to accumulate at the rate of one hour of pay for every 30 hours worked. The paid sick time that are less than a normal work day would be counted on an hourly basis or the smallest increment the employer’s payroll uses to account for use of leave.
Employees of small businesses would have a limit of 32 hours of accrued paid sick time per calendar year. Other employees would have a limit of 56 hours. These hours would carry over from year to year, but could not be more than the limits stated above.
Use of Paid Sick Time
This bill would allow paid sick time to be provided to an employee for the following reasons:
- To care for an immediate family member who suffers from physical or mental illness, injury, medical conditions that require home care, professional medical diagnosis, preventative medical care or routine medical care;
- To care for the employee who suffers from physical or mental illness, injury, medical conditions that require home care, professional medical diagnosis, preventative medical care or routine medical care;
- To allow an employee to address the psychological, physical or legal effects on himself/herself;
- To allow an employee to address domestic violence sexual assault or stalking.
The employer may require certification from a health care provider when the paid sick time period covers more than 3 consecutive workdays.