June 11, 2019
On May 28, 2019, Gov. Mills signed into law LD 369, which is a new paid sick leave law. Effective January 1, 2021, the new law requires employers with 10 or more employees to provide an hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours of paid leave per year. Accrual of leave begins at the start of employment, although the employer is not required to permit use of the leave until the employee has worked 120 days. During the leave, employees must be paid at least the same base rate of pay that the employee received immediately prior to taking the paid leave, and must receive the same benefits as those provided to employees under other types of paid leave. Employees can use paid sick leave to take care of their own illness or serious condition or that of a family member. Employees are expected to provide advanced notice to employers, where possible.
We anticipate the Maine government and regulatory agencies providing additional detail on this new law prior to the 2021 effective date; we’ll continue to monitor any developments and report them here in Compliance Corner.
LD 369 »