Protected Leave For New Parents Under The New Parent Leave Act

New Parent Leave ActUntil now, the main law in California that afforded parents to take time off for babying bonding, adoption or foster care placement has been California Family Rights Act (CFRA / Government Code 12945.2). That protection, however, only applied to employers of 50 or more employees within a 75 mile radius to provide up to 12 workweeks of job protected leave.

Titled the New Parent Leave Act, State Bill (SB 63) / section 12945.6, which went into effect as of January 1, 2018, requires employers within 2o to 49 employees within a 75 mile radius to provide up to 12 workweeks of job protected leave for an employee to bond with a new child within one year of the child’s birth, adoption or foster care placement. As with CFRA and FMLA, an employee will need t have worked more than 12 months and at least 1250 hours for the employer during preceding 12 month period to qualify for leave under New Parent Leave Act. Like with CFRA, employers must guarantee reinstatement. This law also authorized an employee to use accrued vacation pay, paid sick time, other accrued paid time off, or other paid or unpaid time off negotiated with the employer during parental leave. Employers must also maintain and pay for an eligible employee’s medical coverage under a group health plan for the duration of parental leave.

This new law has similar anti-discrimination provisions to those found in CFRA and FMLA. The New Parent Leave Act prohibits employers from refusing to hire, discharging, suspending, or discriminating against an individual for either exercising the right to parental leave or for testifying about his or another employee’s parental leave in an investigation or legal proceeding, or for interfering with, restraining, or denying any rights provided by this law.

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