New legislation in the state of California requires employers with 5+ employees to provide paid time off to employees who experience covered reproductive loss events. This law went into effect on January 1, 2024, and exists separately from other leave requirements, including bereavement leave.
Applicable employers are required to grant the request made by an eligible employee to take up to five days of leave following a covered reproductive loss. In most cases, the leave must be taken within three months of the reproductive loss event. But if an employee uses a different type of leave that they qualify for under state or federal law, they can take reproductive loss leave within three months of the end of the other covered leave period.
Employees may take more than one reproductive loss leave within a 12-month period, but employers do not have to grant more than 20 days of leave within that amount of time. Employees must be employed for at least 30 days to qualify.
Examples of covered reproductive losses include:
- Miscarriage
- Stillbirth
- Failed surrogacy
- Failed adoption
- Unsuccessful assisted reproduction procedure
If the employer has no applicable leave policy in place, the leave may be unpaid. An employee should be able to use any accrued sick leave, vacation time, or personal leave time.
This article is informational and does not constitute legal or financial advice. Consult with an employment lawyer or accountant for additional clarification on how these changes impact your company.
