Colorado’s Paid Sick Leave Law

ACCRUED SICK LEAVE: January 1, 2021 - Took effect for employers with more than 16 employees.

January 1, 2022 - Took effect for employers with fewer than 16 employees.

PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY (PHE) LEAVE:

January 1, 2021 - Took effect for all employers.

Is in effect until four weeks after the declared public health emergency ends.

ACCRUED SICK LEAVE: In perpetuity

PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY (PHE) LEAVE: Applies only during a declared local, state, or federal public health emergency (such as for COVID-19).

ACCRUED SICK LEAVE: Requires employers to provide one hour of accrued paid leave for each 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours per year.

PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY (PHE) LEAVE: Requires employers to supplement existing accrued sick leave to make available up to two weeks of PHE leave for the emergency period (80 hours for full time, less for part time), regardless of how long the worker has been employed with the company.

Any PHE leave hours not taken by an employee in 2021 remain available for use in 2022, and employers are not required to provide more than two weeks of paid PHE regardless of the duration of the emergency or the number of times an employee has a COVID-related need.

ACCRUED SICK LEAVE: Employers are permitted to require documentation for absences of four or more consecutive days, but must allow employees to provide the documentation after the leave ends.

PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY (PHE) LEAVE: Employers are not permitted to require documentation for PHE Leave.

ACCRUED SICK LEAVE: HFWA Paid Sick Time entitles employees to use their paid sick time for the following reasons.

1. The employee has a physical/mental illness, injury, or health condition that prevents them from working; 

2. The employee needs to get medical diagnosis, care, treatment, or preventive care; 

3. The employee needs to care for a family member, as defined by the law, who is ill, injured, has a health condition or needs to get medical diagnosis, care, treatment, or preventive care;

4. Due to a declared public health emergency, a public official has either closed the employee’s workplace or closed their child’s school or place of care and they need time off to care for the child;

5. The employee or their family member has been the victim of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or criminal harassment and the leave is for medical attention/recovery, mental health care or other counseling, seeking either services from a victim services organization or legal services (including preparation or participation in a civil/criminal proceeding), or relocating to safety.

PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY (PHE) LEAVE: Additional paid sick time must be provided during a declared public health emergency.

On the date a public health emergency is declared by a local, state, or federal official (related to infectious pandemics, epidemics, or bioterrorism), workers have the right to immediately receive supplemental paid sick time, as needed, that can be used for the following needs related to a communicable illness that caused the emergency.

1. The employee needs to self-isolate and care for themselves because of a diagnosis or symptoms of the illness;

2. The employee needs to get preventive care, (including vaccines or booster shots), medical diagnosis, care, or treatment for symptoms of the illness;

3. A public official, health authority, or their employer determines their presence on the job or in the community would jeopardize the health of others because of exposure to—or showing symptoms of—the illness (whether diagnosed or not);

4. Care of a family member in categories 1-3 above;

5. Care of a child or other family member when their child care provider is unavailable due to the emergency, or their school or place of care is closed by a public official, school, or place of care due to the emergency (including if it is physically closed but providing remote instruction);

6. The employee is unable to work because of a health condition that may increase susceptibility to or risk of the illness.