Seyfarth Synopsis: Yesterday, the Massachusetts Governor, Senate President and House Speaker issued a joint statement confirming that they have agreed to adopt a 3-month delay to the start of required contributions under the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) Law and to make technical changes to the statute to help improve program design.
The Legislature will need to advance a bill to effectuate these amendments to the statute. At this point, we know that the bill will provide for a 3-month delay to the July 1st start date of required contributions to the PFML program. The bill will also adopt technical changes to clarify program design.
We do not yet know whether the Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) will delay the June 30th deadline for the mandatory notices to be distributed to employees and covered contract workers. Stay tuned on that issue.
It appears that the contribution rate will increase from 0.63% to 0.75% to make up for the 3 months of lost contributions, while the January 1, 2021 and July 1, 2021 effective dates for the commencement of leave benefits will remain the same.
The other proposed technical amendments would provide clarity on issues such as intermittent leave and the definition of "serious health condition." The clarifying amendments will also align core principles of the Massachusetts PFML Law with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
The Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM), the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and numerous supporters played an integral role in leading the push for this delay. We will keep you posted on any developments.
For our prior reports on the PFML Law and the proposed regulations, you may refer to any of our prior alerts below:
- Breaking News—Massachusetts DFML Clarifies That Businesses Do Not Have To Provide Written Notice To 1099 Contractors Where Such Contractors Make Up 50% Or Less Of Their Massachusetts Workforce
- Breaking News – Massachusetts DFML Confirms That Employers May Be Approved Now For Private Plans That Do Not Provide Paid Leave Benefits Until 2021
- Hot Off The Presses: Massachusetts DFML Just Announced Extension Of May 31st Notice Deadline And June 30th Exemption Application Deadline
- Massachusetts DFML Releases Private Plan Exemption Application And Guidance; Applications Due By June 30, 2019
- Massachusetts DFML Releases Template Paid Family And Medical Leave Notices And Sets May 31, 2019 Distribution Deadline
- Massachusetts Releases Updated Proposed Paid Family And Medical Leave Regulations—What You Need To Know
- Massachusetts DFML Releases New Guidelines Providing Clarifying Information And Other Helpful Resources On Paid Family And Medical Leave In Advance Of Friday's Issuance Of The Proposed Regulations
- Massachusetts Legislature Passes Bill Providing $15 Minimum Wage And Paid Family And Medical Leave: What Employers Need To Know
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