Southern California is seeing increased cases of the flu. As of the end of December, the rate was nearing 17%, which was much higher than the U.S. average. There’s also been a confirmed case of bird flu in a child, and plenty of other viruses making their rounds.
When you have a family that needs you and a full-time job weighing on you, Shegerian Conniff understands that you need to know what the laws are regarding family leave. Providing you qualify, you’re entitled to paid and unpaid time off. Knowing the laws is an important first step to ensuring you get the time off that your employer is obligated to provide.
Understanding the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
On a federal level, FMLA is a law that provides qualified workers with 12 weeks of job-protected, unpaid time off to:
- Bond with a new child (pregnancy or adoption)
- Care for a family member
- Recover from an illness
- Take exigency leave when a family member’s military unit deploys overseas and issues like needing to make new daycare arrangements, attend military ceremonies, or care for an injured service member (increases to 26 weeks of unpaid leave.)
To qualify for FMLA, you must work for a company with at least 50 employees within 75 miles of your workplace. You must have worked for that company for a minimum of 12 months (1,250 hours in a 12-month period). The leave is unpaid, but it guarantees your job or a comparative position is still available when you return. You cannot be demoted to a lower position when you return or are told you must take a deduction in pay.
Understanding the California Family Rights Act (CFRA)
In addition to FMLA, California has its own program, CFRA. This employment law provides eligible workers with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave with their position protected during their time away.
Again, the worker must have worked for more than 12 months and a minimum of 1,250 hours during that time. They can use CFRA to:
- Bond with a new child (childbirth, foster care, or adoption)
- Care for a family member
- Recover from a serious illness
This leave is unpaid, but some employees offer pay during CFRA. Read employment contracts carefully to determine if your CFRA leave is paid or not. If it is unpaid, CFRA allows workers to use up accrued vacation or sick leave to cover the lost hours. However, you cannot use those hours if you’re receiving State Disability Insurance.
Your employer cannot cancel your insurance plans when you’re on leave. You’re also allowed to continue to count those weeks of leave when it comes to building seniority.
Similar to FMLA, there are family leave laws for California’s military families. Spouses of military members who are deployed are allowed 10 unpaid days off while a domestic partner or spouse is away.
Parents who work for the same employer do not have to split up 12 weeks of leave to care for a new child or other family member. Each parent gets a full 12 weeks of unpaid time off.
Additional Family Leave Laws to Consider
CFRA and FMLA are not your only options. Here are others to be aware of.
Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL)
If you’re pregnant, have recently given birth, or lost a child. PDL allows up to four months of unpaid time off for prenatal and postnatal care, pregnancy complications, or loss of a child.
Emergency Proclamations During Natural Disasters
Los Angeles and Ventura counties are both covered by an emergency proclamation regarding the January 2025 wildfires. Because many families have evacuated and cannot get to their home or place of work, Governor Newsom issued a state of emergency.
As part of this, employers may have to send workers home before completing half a shift. This is considered an Act of God. Employers are not required to pay nonexempt employees (workers who are eligible for overtime and minimum wage) more than the hours they actually worked. Exempt employees (administrators, executives, etc.) must be paid for any time off because of the fires.
Health Workplaces, Healthy Families Act
In January 2025, the updated Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act went into effect. Employers must provide workers with a minimum of 5 sick days or 40 hours of paid sick leave accrued at a rate of one hour for every 30 hours of work. Sick days do not have to be used solely when you’re sick. It also includes preventative medical care or a victim’s recovery from stalking, sexual assault, or domestic violence.
School Activities Leave
Workers who must take time off because a child’s school or daycare is closed because of the wildfires are allowed School Activities Leave of up to 40 hours a year. The leave is unpaid, but it’s available to anyone who works for a company with at least 25 employees.
If you lost your income due to the fires, file unemployment with the California Employment Development Department. The one-week waiting period is waived for anyone in an evacuation area.
A Summary of What This Means for You
When you’re sick, as long as you’ve met the number of hours (1,250) in the past 12 months, you’re entitled to time off. If you’re caring for a family member (parent, grandparent, spouse/partner, child, best friend, or other very close blood relative or friend), you’re also entitled to unpaid time off with CFRA.
Per CFRA, you need to give as much notice as you can. This isn’t always easy. You can’t predict the future. If you’re pregnant and go into early labor, there’s no way to give advance notice. Do the best you can. If you do have advanced notice, such as an upcoming surgery, alert your employer at least 15 days in advance.
Right now, the wildfires are at the front of everyone’s minds. Employers must share information on employee rights during the emergency declaration. This includes nonexempt employees who were just hired. If you haven’t received information on your employee rights during the fires, even as a new hire, your employer isn’t following the laws. This is information you must know.
What if your employer isn’t following federal or California family leave laws? Read your employee contract to see who you report violations to. It may be your HR department or the state. Take action. Don’t ignore it and hope they’ll correct matters in the future.
The employment attorneys at Shegerian Conniff are experts in family leave laws in California. Reach us online for a free consultation to learn more.