Massachusetts is implementing a new Earned Sick Time Policy that all MA-based employers must comply with effective July 1, 2015.
In short, employers are mandated to provide 1 hour of Sick Time for every 30 hours worked; with a cap of 40 hours of Sick Time per year. This includes full-time, part-time, temporary and seasonal employees. The Sick Time is unpaid or paid depending on the size of the company as follows:
An employer must provide earned paid sick time to all eligible employees if the employer maintained an average of 11 or more employees on the payroll during the preceding benefit year. Employers shall determine the average number of employees by counting the number of employees, including full time, part-time, seasonal, and temporary employees, on the payroll during each pay period and dividing by the number of pay periods. Employees furnished to an employer by a temporary staffing agency and paid by the staffing agency count as employees of both the staffing agency and the employer for the purpose of determining employer size.
Employers must post the Earned Sick Time notice in a conspicuous location accessible to employees and provide the employees with a copy.