On Labor Day, President Obama signed an Executive Order establishing paid sick leave for contractors and subcontractors of the federal government. The Order can be found here, and the Fact Sheet can be found here.
Citing the fact that an estimated 44 million workers do not have paid sick leave, and the ostensible benefits of reduced turnover and increased productivity, the President travelled to Boston (Massachusetts already requires paid sick leave) to announce his new Executive Order. The Order requires, among other things, the following:
- Federal contractors and subcontractors shall ensure that their employees earn not less than 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked;
- Executive departments and agencies shall ensure that all federal contracts (and solicitations) contain clauses that require, as a condition of payment, that workers earn the required paid sick leave. These clauses are required to flow down to lower-tier subcontracts;
- A contractor may not cap annual paid sick leave at an amount less than 56 hours;
- Accrued paid sick leave shall carry over from year to year; and
- Health care provider certification is only required if the employee misses three or more consecutive work days.
Paid sick leave can be used by an employee for (i) his or her own physical or mental illness, injury, or medical condition, (ii) obtaining diagnosis, care, or preventive care from a health care provider; (iii) caring for a child, a parent, a spouse, a domestic partner, or any other individual whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship or (iv) missing work to obtain counseling, seek relocation or assistance from a victim services organization or taking legal action related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
The employer does not have to pay any employee upon separation for unused sick leave and cannot retaliate against an employee for invoking his or her rights under the Order.