New- Parent Leave Law in CA
The New Parent Leave Act went into effect on January 1, 2018 and considerably broadens the number of companies subject to family-friendly leave of absence policies.
The law requires employers with at least 20 employees to provide their employees with 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected parental bonding leave. The provision enables eligible employees to bond with a new child within one year of the child’s birth, adoption or foster care placement.
In addition, the leave is job-protected, meaning employers must guarantee employment in the same or a comparable position upon an employee’s return from leave. Employers must also maintain and pay for the employee’s continued health care coverage as if they had continued to work.
The act does not apply to employees who are already covered by both the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), both of which already provide very similar leave and job protection to employers with at least 50employees.
Here’s what you need to do:
Create a compliant leave of absence policy
Develop leave of absence forms and procedures
Update your Employee Handbook
Train your managers about the requirements of the act
FutureSense HR can create custom Leave of Absence policies and create a compliant Employee Handbook to meet your business needs. Reach out today and see how we can help! For more information, please contact us at 888-336-0909 or info@futuresense.com.
