California COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Expires

The 888 Tower office building, which will be turned into a residential complex, is seen from Main Street in downtown Santa Ana, Calif., on Nov. 13, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

California’s 2021 Supplemental Paid Leave program, implemented at the beginning of this year, is set to expire Sept. 30 and there is no indication that the order will be extended.

Senate Bill 95, approved by Gov. Gavin Newsom on March 19, requires companies with 26 or more employees to provide their workers who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with up to 80 hours of supplemental paid sick leave.

The bill was made retroactive to Jan. 1, 2021. Between January and September, the bill entitled “a covered employee to 80 hours of COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave if that employee either works full time or was scheduled to work, on average, at least 40 hours per week for the employer in the 2 weeks preceding the date the covered employee took COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave.”

The paid sick leave was granted to employees when they were unable to work or telework due to a quarantine order, taking care of family members who were subject to a quarantine, experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, and suffering severe vaccine-related side effects.

A spokesperson from Gov. Newsom’s office told ABC10 that there was no update on whether to extend the program and emphasized that “California has been working proactively to prepare for the end of federal benefits this month by connecting Californians with other public benefits that have been expanded by the American Rescue Plan and California Comeback Plan.”