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Beginning on January 1, 2025, New York will become the first state to mandate paid leave, known as “paid prenatal personal leave,” specifically for pregnant employees. Under this law, all New York private sector employers, regardless of size, must provide 20 hours of paid prenatal personal leave to both full-time and part-time employees. Employees can use this paid leave for “health care services received by an employee during their pregnancy or related to such pregnancy, including physical examinations, medical procedures, monitoring and testing, and discussions with a health care provider related to the pregnancy.”
Other key features of this law include:
- Employees may use this leave during any 52-week period.
- Companies must provide prenatal leave in addition to the leave already required by the New York Paid Sick Leave Law.
- Employees may use the leave in hourly increments and be compensated at their regular rate of pay, or the applicable minimum wage, whichever is greater.
- Employers are not required to pay an employee for unused prenatal personal leave upon their separation from employment.
- The law does not provide direction as to various documentation and employee notice requirements, and the New York State Department of Labor is expected to implement regulations regarding this new law.
This new leave law corresponds with a June 2024 New York law requiring employers to provide 30 minutes of paid break time for nursing mothers for up to three years following childbirth. Accordingly, to ensure compliance with recent legislative changes, New York employers should update their existing policies, leave procedures and handbooks.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
