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CT Paid Family & Medical Leave Act CT PAID FAMILY LEAVE FACT SHEET FOR EMPLOYERS & EMPLOYEES On June 25, 2019, Connecticut passed legislation to create a comprehensive paid family and medical leave insurance program – Connecticut Public Act 19-25. The Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA) is administered by the quasi-public CT Paid Leave Authority, a department of the Department of Administrative Services. The purpose of the PFMLA is to provide workers with access to paid leave for life events covered under the federal Family and Medical Leave act of 1993 (FMLA), the Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act (CT FMLA) and the Connecticut Family Violence Leave Act: • To address the worker’s own serious health concern; • To care for a child after birth, adoption or foster placement; • To provide care to a seriously ill or injured family member; • To address qualifying exigencies arising from the military deployment of spouse, son, daughter or parent of employee on active duty or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty, or to care for a military family member who is injured during active duty; • To serve as an organ or bone marrow donor; or • To address certain matters relating to family violence. The program will be funded by employees and voluntary self-enrolled participants (self-employed individuals or sole proprietors who can opt-in). Collection of employee wage deductions by employers must begin on January 1, 2021. Payment of benefits determined by the Authority will begin on January 1, 2022. Eligibility Employers: Employers with one or more employees. Employees: A covered employee, even a part-time employee, under PFMLA earned wages of at least $2,325 in the highest quarter of the first four of the five most recently completed quarters and are currently employed or were employed by a Connecticut employer during the 12 weeks immediately preceding the employee’s application to the Authority. Definition of Family Member Child, Parent, Spouse, Domestic Partner, Grandparent Grandchild, Individual related to employee by blood or affinity whose close association shows to be equivalent of those family relationships. Length of Paid Leave A qualified employee is entitled to up to 12 weeks of paid leave benefits. In the event of the employee experiences a serious health condition resulting in incapacitation that occurs during a pregnancy, the employee may qualify for an additional 2 weeks of paid leave under the PFMLA. Amount of Pay If an employee’s wages are less than or equal to the CT minimum wage multiplied by 40, the weekly wage rate under the PFMLA will be 95% of the average weekly wage. Note: 40 times the minimum wage will be equal to $520 weekly in January, 2022, the start of the payout, increasing to $560 on July 1, 2022 and $600 on June 1, 2023. If an employee’s wages exceed the minimum wage multiplied by 40, the weekly benefit rate will be 95% of the minimum wage multiplied by 40 plus 60% of the amount the average weekly wage exceeds the minimum wage multiplied by 40. The benefit rate is capped at 60 times the CT minimum wage. Payroll Deductions of Employees Employee payroll deductions begin January 1, 2021 at 0.5% of the employee wages up to the Social Security contribution base. The deductions will be pooled into a single trust managed by the State Treasurer. There is no employer match. Exclusions • Employees of the federal government; • State and municipal employees who are members of a union (unions can bargain to be included in the program); • Employees of local and regional members of boards of education; • Non-public elementary and secondary school employees. Enforcement The CT Paid Leave Authority’s website states that it “…offers payment for qualifying events but does not offer job protection to employees taking leave. Only employers can determine, in communication with the employee, whether the leave taken is subject to job protection. Federal and state Family & Medical Leave Acts describe the rules for job-protected leave and are NOT paid leave laws.” There is no private right of action under the CT PFMLA. A complaint must be addressed to Commissioner of the CT Department of Labor for a decision and review may be submitted to Superior Court. Relief is limited only to the compensation that was denied.