Los Angeles County: Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Ordinance Extended and Expanded

The Board of Supervisors retroactively extended and expanded the Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Ordinance, which was originally enacted on April 28, 2020. The ordinance required employers with 500 or more employees nationally to provide paid sick leave to employees in LA County and expired on December 31, 2020. The ordinance now expires two weeks after the end of the local COVID-19 health emergency (and is retroactively extended from January 1, 2021). Furthermore, since leave under FFCRA is now optional for employers, the Board expanded the law to apply to all sized employers in the unincorporated areas of the county.

Employees do not need to satisfy a service requirement. An employee merely needs to be employed during the period covered by the ordinance. To be eligible, an employee must not be able to work (including telework) due to one of the following reasons:

• A public health official or health care provider requires or recommends the employee isolate or self-quarantine to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
• The employee is subject to a federal, state or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19 (e.g., is at least 65 years old or has a health condition such as heart disease, asthma, lung disease, diabetes, kidney disease or weakened immune system).
• The employee needs to care for a family member who is subject to a federal, state or local quarantine or isolation order related to COV1D-19 or has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine for reasons related to COVID-19.
• The employee takes time off work because the employee needs to provide care for a family member whose senior care provider, school or childcare provider ceases operations in response to a public health or other public official's recommendation.

Eligible full-time employees may receive up to 80 hours of paid sick leave up to a daily max of $511. Part-time employees may receive paid sick leave based on the average number of hours and pay rate for a two-week period during the eligibility period.

Importantly, an employer may not require a doctor’s note or other documentation from the employee.

Employers who were originally exempt because of size should revise leave policies and communicate eligibility to employees in order to comply with the ordinance’s requirements.

Supplemental Paid Sick Leave, Revised »