Paid Sick Leave in California: Your Rights Under State and Local Law

Overview

California provides full paid sick leave protections to employees under the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014, codified in California Labor Code Sections 245 through 249. This state law guarantees most employees the right to accrue and use paid sick leave for their own health needs, preventive care, and to address domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. Also, many California cities and counties have enacted local ordinances that provide even more generous paid sick leave benefits than the state minimum.

Understanding your rights to paid sick leave is essential. This guide explains California's state requirements, the differences between accrual and frontloading, permitted uses, employer protections against retaliation, local ordinances that provide greater benefits, and the process for filing a complaint if your employer violates your rights.

This guide provides a general overview of California paid sick leave law. It does not constitute legal advice.

Who Is Covered

California's paid sick leave law applies to most employees working in California. Specifically, you are entitled to paid sick leave if you are an employee who works for a covered employer in California for at least 30 days in a calendar year. This is a low threshold and covers:

• Full-time employees
• Part-time employees
• Temporary employees
• Employees in any industry

The 30-day threshold is applied on a calendar-year basis. Once you have worked 30 days (not necessarily consecutive), you become entitled to paid sick leave for the remainder of that calendar year.

Certain employees are exempt from California's paid sick leave requirements, including independent contractors, employees covered by certain collective bargaining agreements that provide equivalent benefits, and some public employees. Also, employees in other states who work remotely for a California employer are generally not covered.

Accrual and Use

General Accrual Rate

Under California Labor Code Section 246, employees generally accrue paid sick leave at a minimum rate of one (1) hour per 30 hours worked. This means that for every 30 hours of work, an employee earns one hour of paid sick leave.

Annual Cap and SB 616 Changes

California employers must provide a minimum of 40 hours of paid sick leave per calendar year effective January 1, 2024. Prior to this date (before SB 616 took effect), the minimum was 24 hours per year. This represents a significant increase in sick leave entitlements.

The 80-hour figure is a ceiling an employer is permitted to impose, not one it is required to impose. Labor Code Section 246(j) provides that an employer "has no obligation under this section to allow an employee's total accrual of paid sick leave to exceed 80 hours or 10 days." That is a limit on total accrual rather than an annual figure, and an employer is free to be more generous. Separately, Section 246(d) provides that accrued paid sick days carry over to the following year, but that an employer may limit use to 40 hours or five days in each year, and that no accrual or carryover is required at all if the full amount of leave, meaning five days or 40 hours, is provided at the beginning of each year.

Two Availability Milestones, Separate From the Accrual Rate

Where an employer uses accrual rather than frontloading, Section 246 does not leave availability to the arithmetic of the accrual rate alone. It sets floors by calendar day of employment. An employee must have accrued, or the employer must have provided:

• No less than 24 hours or three days by the 120th calendar day of employment
• No less than 40 hours or five days by the 200th calendar day of employment

These matter because the accrual rate on its own can lag them. A part-time employee working 20 hours a week accrues roughly 17 hours by day 120 at one hour per 30 worked, and is nonetheless entitled to have 24 hours available. Anyone told their balance is simply whatever the rate produces should check it against these two floors.

Use of Accrued Leave

Employees are entitled to use accrued paid sick leave beginning on the 90th day of employment, which is an earlier and separate gate from the two milestones above. After that point, employers cannot require employees to work through accrued sick leave or impose penalties for using it. Paid sick leave is earned immediately but use can be delayed until 90 days have passed.

Employer Frontloading Option

California law provides employers with an alternative to the accrual method. Instead of requiring employees to accrue sick leave gradually, employers may choose to "frontload" paid sick leave by providing employees with 40 hours (or more) of paid sick leave at the beginning of each calendar year.

If an employer chooses to frontload, the employer may require employees to wait until a certain date in the calendar year before using the leave, but employees must be permitted to use the leave by the 90th day of employment in that year. Employers who frontload do not need to track accrual separately; instead, they simply provide the lump sum at the start of the year and track usage.

Both accrual and frontloading approaches must result in at least 40 hours of paid sick leave being available to employees per calendar year.

Permitted Uses

Employees in California are entitled to use paid sick leave for several specific purposes under Labor Code Section 246:

• Employee's own illness, injury, or health condition. This includes physical or mental health conditions requiring medical diagnosis or care.
• Preventive care. Employees may use sick leave for medical examinations, check-ups, and other preventive services.
• Care of a family member. Employees may use paid sick leave to care for a family member who is ill, injured, or requires preventive care or treatment. Labor Code Section 245.5(c) defines family member more broadly than most people assume, and it runs to eight categories: a child, including a biological, adopted, or foster child, a stepchild, a legal ward, or a child the employee stands in loco parentis to; a parent or guardian, on the same range of relationships; a spouse; a registered domestic partner; a grandparent; a grandchild; a sibling; and a designated person.
• The designated person, in particular. Under Section 245.5(c)(8) a designated person means, for sick leave purposes, simply "a person identified by the employee at the time the employee requests paid sick days." There is no requirement of any family relationship, and nothing to arrange in advance. The employer may limit the employee to one designated person per 12-month period. Note that this is broader than the version of the same term in the CFRA leave statute, which requires the association to be the equivalent of a family relationship; see the CFRA and FMLA guide for that comparison.
• Domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. Employees may use paid sick leave to obtain medical attention, psychological counseling, legal services, or other assistance related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking affecting the employee or a family member.

Employers cannot limit the use of paid sick leave to these permitted purposes by requiring advance notice or documentation, provided that such requests are reasonable and do not exceed legal limits. Employers generally cannot require a doctor's note for absences of one or two days.

Employee Protections

No Retaliation

California Labor Code Section 246.5 provides critical protections against retaliation. It is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against, threaten, coerce, or retaliate against an employee for requesting paid sick leave, informing the employer that the employee intends to use paid sick leave, or disclosing information about paid sick leave rights to other employees or government agencies.

Retaliation is broadly defined and includes any adverse employment action taken because an employee exercised or attempted to exercise paid sick leave rights. Prohibited retaliatory actions include:

• Termination
• Demotion or reduction in pay
• Discipline or written warnings
• Denial of promotions or work opportunities
• Negative performance evaluations based on sick leave use
• Requiring the employee to look for replacement workers
• Reducing hours or schedule changes in response to sick leave requests

The 30-Day Presumption

Labor Code § 246.5(c)(2) creates a rebuttable presumption of unlawful retaliation where the employer denies the use of accrued sick days, discharges, threatens to discharge, demotes, suspends, or otherwise discriminates within 30 days of the employee filing a complaint with the Labor Commissioner, cooperating in an investigation, or opposing a prohibited policy.

Two things about it are worth being precise on, because both are commonly overstated.

• What triggers the 30 days. It runs from a complaint, an investigation, or opposition to a prohibited policy. It does not run from simply using sick leave. Being punished for taking leave is still unlawful under § 246.5(c)(1); it just does not come with the presumption.
• What the presumption does. It shifts the burden. It does not impose a clear and convincing evidence standard on the employer. That heavier standard belongs to whistleblower claims under Labor Code § 1102.6 and does not carry over here.

Local Ordinances That Provide More

Several California cities and counties have adopted paid sick leave ordinances that provide more generous benefits than the state minimum. Employees in these jurisdictions are entitled to the greater of state law or local law.

Several cities, among them San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego, Berkeley, Santa Monica, and Long Beach, require more paid sick leave than the state minimum. The specific hour figures, the employer-size tiers that often apply to them, and their accrual and carryover rules are set by local ordinance and change independently of state law. This guide does not reproduce those figures, because a stale local number is worse than none. Check your city or county's own ordinance page for the current amount.

If you work in any of these jurisdictions (or another city or county with a local ordinance), you are entitled to the greater sick leave amount. Always check your local city or county website to confirm the requirements in your area.

Employer Notice and Recordkeeping Requirements

Notification Requirements

Employers are required to provide clear, written notice to employees of their paid sick leave rights. This notice must include:

• The amount of paid sick leave provided
• The employee's right to use paid sick leave
• The terms of use (permitted uses, notice requirements, etc.)
• The employee's right to pay-out upon separation of employment

Employers must provide this notice in writing, in the employee's primary language, and in a manner that is easy to understand. The notice must be provided to new employees before or at the time of hire, and to existing employees within 30 days of January 1, 2015 (or whenever the law became effective for that employer).

Recordkeeping

Employers must maintain accurate records of paid sick leave accrued, used, and carried over for each employee. These records must be kept for at least three years and must be readily accessible to the employee upon request. Employers must also provide employees with information about their current paid sick leave balance on each pay stub or in writing at least quarterly.

Pay-Out Upon Termination

When an employee is terminated (either involuntarily or voluntarily), the employer must pay out any unused accrued paid sick leave at the employee's regular hourly rate of pay. This requirement ensures that employees do not lose earned leave when employment ends.

Common Violations

Employers frequently violate California's paid sick leave law in the following ways:

• Denying paid sick leave. Telling an employee that sick leave is unavailable or cannot be used for certain purposes.
• Requiring advance notice for short absences. Many employers require advance notice before an employee can use sick leave, but such notice should not be required for foreseeable or emergency absences, depending on the circumstances.
• Requiring a doctor's note for one or two-day absences. Employers cannot require medical documentation for absences of one or two days without a reasonable business justification and compliance with legal limits.
• Retaliating against employees for using sick leave. Adverse treatment, negative performance reviews, or discipline based on sick leave use is illegal.
• Failing to pay out accrued sick leave upon termination. Employers must pay out all unused sick leave when employment ends.
• Failing to notify employees of their sick leave rights. Employers must provide clear written notice at the time of hire or employment.
• Not allowing sick leave use until 90 days. While employers may delay use until day 90, accrual begins immediately.
• Requiring employees to find replacement workers. Some employers illegally condition sick leave use on the employee arranging coverage.

How to File a Complaint

If you believe your employer has violated your paid sick leave rights, several remedies are available:

Labor Commissioner's Office (DLSE)

The California Labor Commissioner's Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) enforces paid sick leave rights. Wage claims may be filed with the local Labor Commissioner alleging violations of paid sick leave law. The filing process involves contacting the regional Labor Commissioner's office, completing a wage claim form, and providing documentation of employment and the alleged violation. The DLSE will schedule a hearing (called a "Berman hearing") before an administrative law judge. If the complaint is successful, the Labor Commissioner may order reinstatement, back pay, and payment of the sick days unlawfully withheld, plus administrative penalties under § 248.5: for withheld sick days, the dollar value multiplied by three or $250, whichever is greater; for other harm such as a wrongful discharge, $50 per day the violation continued. Both are capped at an aggregate $4,000. Where the Labor Commissioner or the Attorney General brings a civil action, recovery can also include liquidated damages, attorney's fees, and costs. An employer avoids penalties for an isolated and unintentional payroll or notice error where it has compliant policies in place.

There Is No Private Right of Action, and This Is the Part to Get Right

The paid sick leave law does not let you sue your employer for damages over the sick leave itself. Labor Code § 248.5 puts enforcement with the Labor Commissioner, who may act administratively, and with the Labor Commissioner or the Attorney General, who may bring a civil action. Section 248.5(e) limits enforcement by any other person or entity to equitable, injunctive, or restitutionary relief. So a worker filing an individual damages suit on the sick leave provisions is likely to have it dismissed, which is why the administrative route above is the route.

One contested exception. In Wood v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals (2023) 88 Cal.App.5th 742, the Court of Appeal held that § 248.5(e)'s limitation refers to actions under the Unfair Competition Law and does not bar a PAGA action seeking civil penalties for the same violations. Federal courts and some state trial courts have gone the other way, so this is genuinely unsettled. A PAGA claim also has its own notice requirements and its own one-year limitations period, and it is not something to attempt without a lawyer.

Retaliation is a different question from the leave itself. Where a worker was fired or disciplined, other theories may be available alongside the § 246.5 route, and that is worth advice rather than assumption.

Public Agencies

Administrative complaints may also be filed with the California Labor Commissioner, the California Department of Industrial Relations, or other enforcement agencies. Some violations may also be reported to local city or county enforcement offices if you are working under a local ordinance with additional rights.

Conclusion

California's paid sick leave law represents a significant worker protection that ensures employees can address health needs without fear of retaliation or loss of income. With the recent increase to 40 hours per year effective 2024, and additional protections in many local jurisdictions, California employees have substantial rights. If your employer denies you paid sick leave, retaliates for using it, fails to pay it out upon separation, or otherwise violates these rights, you have legal remedies available. Consulting with an employment attorney can help you understand your rights and options for enforcing them.