The final rules implementing Portland’s new Sick Leave Ordinance have been published. The new rules go into effect January 1, 2014 and require all employers to provide up to 40 hours of sick leave per year to all employees employed at least 90 days and working at least 240 hours a year within Portland City limits.
Here are some changes and clarification from the proposed rules. Please make sure you review the final rules to make sure your practice is in compliance.
- If you use a specific twelve month period of time for calculating wages and benefits you can use the same time period for the sick leave accrual. It does not have to be done on a calendar basis.
- You are not required to provide sick time accrual for hours spent by the employee on paid or unpaid leave.
- If you have an employee that travel through the city and who stops in the city for purpose of work, you are required to make a reasonable estimate of an employee’s time spent working in the city.
- If you provide your employees with sick leave as a total number at the beginning of the year rather than making them accrue during the year you are not required to allow an employee to carry over accrued hours to the next year.
- Employers must provide written notice to all employees who work in the city about their entitlement to sick leave, including the amount of leave, terms of its use, the prohibition against retaliation and the right to file a complaint if sick leave is denied.
- Employees are allowed to use sick leave beginning on the 91st calendar day of employment as long as the employee has also worked a minimum of 240 hours in the city.
- Employers must display a poster, which the city should have published by the end of the year.
- Employers must keep sick leave records for two years.
Please make sure you are reviewing your sick leave policy if you are inside Portland City limits. If there are any questions we can help answer, please contact our firm.