What is sick leave?
Sick leave is time employees take off if they or a family member are sick. There are two types: paid and unpaid sick leave. With paid sick leave the employee receives the same wages as if they worked.
Compliance with Federal Law
On a federal level, there is no mandated paid sick leave. However, the US functions like 50 individual countries, meaning that different states have their own regulations. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for certain medical situations for either the employee or a member of the employee’s immediate family.
State paid sick leave laws
Paid sick leave in the US depends on the rules of state or municipality, and so does criteria on the circumstances under which it is granted. As of 2025, 21 states and Washington DC require paid sick leave while the remaining 29 do not.
Which states have mandatory paid sick leave laws?
| Alaska | Effective as of July 1st, 2025, Alaska becomes one of 20 states that mandate sick leave for private employees. This law requires employers to provide a minimum of one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Employers with 15 or more employees can cap annual accrual and use at 56 hours, while those with fewer than 15 can cap it at 40 hours. |
| Arizona | Effective as of 2017, Arizona mandates paid sick leave for private sector employees. Employers with 15 or more employees must provide up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per year, while those with fewer than 15 employees must provide up to 24 hours per year. |
| California | The state mandates paid sick leave for nearly all employers. Under the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act, employers must provide at least 40 hours or five days of paid sick leave annually to most employees, including part-time and temporary workers, who have worked for the same employer for at least 30 days within a year. |
| Colorado | Paid sick leave is governed through the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act, which requires employers to provide up to 48 hours of paid sick and safe time leave per year. |
| Connecticut | As of January 1, 2025, employers with 25 or more employees must provide paid sick leave, and this requirement expands to cover all employers by January 1, 2027. |
| Washington D.C. |
The Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act of 2008 requires employers to provide paid sick leave to workers who spend at least 50% of their time working in D.C., regardless of the number of hours they work. The 2013 amendment expanded coverage to include all employees working in D.C. |
| Illinois |
As of January 1st, 2024, Illinois mandates paid sick leave under the Paid Leave for All Workers Act (PLAWA). Employees accrue one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked, capped at 40 hours a year. |
| Maine |
As of 2021, the law requires employers with 10 or more employees to provide one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. |
| Maryland |
Employers with 15 or more employees must provide paid sick and safe leave, while smaller employers (14 or fewer) are required to provide unpaid sick leave. |
| Massachusetts |
Paid sick leave is mandated for businesses with 11 or more employees, while smaller employers must provide unpaid sick leave. Employees accrue 1 hour of sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. |
| Michigan |
From February this year, Michigan also mandates paid sick leave under the Earned Sick Time Act (ESTA). Employees accrue 1 hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked. |
| Minnesota |
Paid sick leave is mandated for most employees, starting January 1, 2024. This law, known as the Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST) Act, requires employers to provide one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 48 hours per year. |
| Missouri |
From May 1, 2025, under Proposition A the law requires employers to provide employees with one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. |
| Nebraska |
As of October 1, 2025 the Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces Act requires employers to provide employees with paid sick time for their own health needs, to care for family members, and for public health emergencies. |
| Nevada |
Employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide a minimum of 0.01923 hours of paid leave for each hour worked, equivalent to about 40 hours annually for a full-time employee. |
| New Jersey |
Paid sick leave is mandated, and employees accrue 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. |
| New Mexico |
Paid sick leave is mandated for private employers with at least 1 employee, capped at 64 hours a year. One hour is accrued for every 30 hours worked. |
| New York |
Employers with 5 or more employees must provide a minimum of 40 hours of paid sick leave per year. |
| Oregon |
Oregon requires one hour of sick time is accrued for every 30 hours you work. If an employer has 10 or more employees (6 or more if they have a location in Portland), they must provide paid sick time. |
| Rhode Island |
Employers with 18 or more employees must provide paid sick and safe leave, capped at 40 hours a year. |
| Vermont |
The law allows employees to accrue one hour of earned sick time for every 52 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. |
| Washington |
One hour of sick leave is accrued for every 40 hours worked, capped at 40 hours a year. |
However, it’s also important to note that some states that do not mandate sick leave are home to cities and municipalities that do have their own regulations requiring it. For example, Pennsylvania does not mandate paid sick leave at the state level; however, cities such as Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Allegheny County have their own requirements.
Additionally, several cities in California — including Oakland, San Francisco, and Berkeley — have paid sick leave laws that exceed the state’s minimum requirements. Chicago, Illinois, also offers additional protections.
Always check city and municipality regulations when determining paid sick leave. Working an Employer of Record can keep on top of state and local regulations for you, so you can focus on making placements – get in touch today.