Q: Does New York City's mandatory sick leave apply retroactively during you employment?
If an employee has a medical emergency in the first weeks on a new job before full days of sick leave accrue, is the employer responsible for paying for that leave if the time accrues in the employee's subsequent months on the job?
Another way: Can an employer refuse an employee's sick leave until he has worked a minimum number of hours (I think the number for a full sick day would be 240 hours as there is 1 hour accrued for every 30 hours worked)?
A:
The short answer to your question is no.
Under NYC’s Paid Safe and Sick Leave Law, employees of eligible employers can start using accrued sick leave 120 days after the start of their employment. Employees accrue sick leave at the rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours of sick leave per calendar year. (Different rules apply for domestic workers.) Sick leave is accrued even during initial probationary periods.
After 120 days, employees can use their sick leave as it is accrued. There is no provision for reimbursing employees who must take sick leave before they have accrued the time or before the 120 days have elapsed.
You can read more about the family and medical leave at https://www.workingnowandthen.com/new-york-fmla-nyspfl/.
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