Most California employees will soon be able to take paid sick leave days, as a new California law goes into full effect Wednesday.
AB 1522, or the Healthy Workplace Healthy Family Act of 2014, ensures that California employees who work at least 30 days a year will be able to take at least three days of paid leave a year after a 90-day employment period with that company.
Sick leave days will be granted so employees can take care of themselves or a family member, and are meant to cover the care of an existing health condition, diagnosis of a condition, or specified purposes such as victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
Lydia Flores is a grocery store cashier and mother of three boys, and her youngest son Matthew is epileptic.
"I’m a single mother so I have to support my children," Flores said.
She is one of the estimated 6.5 million Californians that will be affected by the new law, according to the officials behind the new legislation.
Flores has struggled emotionally with the choices she has had to make for her son’s care.
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"It’s not fair that I have to sit in a hospital and think if I should stay with my son or go to work." Flores said. "I don’t want to be away from my son when he gets sick."
Under the law that went into effect Jan. 1, employees will be able to start earning sick leave days during a 90-day period that starts July 1.
While employees can't take sick days during that period, they can still start earning them during those 90 days and use them afterward.
Since employees will earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, a person who works full time would earn just over eight days of sick leave a year, although employers can limit paid sick days to 24 hours or three days a year.
While most Californians will be affected, "employees covered by qualifying collective bargaining agreements, In-Home Supportive Services providers, and certain employees of air carriers are not covered by this law," according to AB 1522.
Employees can request an earned day of sick leave verbally or in writing, and will be paid their normal hourly wage. Employers are not allowed to force their employees to find a replacement for sick days taken.
AB 1522 also requires that employers comply with several other stipulations listed on the Department of Industrial Relations website.
The grocery store where Flores works, El Super Markets, currently allots two paid sick days, but the company will be increasing that amount in accordance with the new law.
The 90-day accrual period starts for California employees Wednesday, or on the day they are hired by a new employer.
Lolita Lopez contributed to this report.
