California workers have new COVID-19 sick pay benefits. Here’s how it works

Fanny Ortiz, a union organizer, raises her fist in a “drive-thru strike line” at a McDonald’s in Monterey Park on April 9, 2020. “We wouldn’t be here without them and I’m honored to be able to sign these pieces of legislation today.” The sick leave policy allows all workers at businesses of 26 or more employees to take paid time off to recover from COVID-19, care for a sick family member, attend a vaccination appointment, recover from immunization or take care of a child who cannot attend school because of virus-related closures or quarantines. Assembly Bill 84 provides California workers at companies with 26 or more employees with up to 80 hours of COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave. One bank gives workers up to 40 hours of flexible paid leave to recover from COVID-19, care for a sick family member, attend a vaccination appointment, recover from immunization or take care of a child who cannot attend school because of virus-related closures or quarantines. The legislation says an employee whose weekly hours vary would receive “seven times the average number of hours the covered employee worked each day for the employer in the six months preceding the date the covered employee took COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave” for each of the two banks.