Maryland Sick and Safe Leave Act

Maryland Sick and Safe Leave Act: Employer Requirements

Maryland's Healthy Working Families Act establishes earned sick and safe leave requirements for covered employers and employees. The law, which took effect February 11, 2018, provides eligible employees with leave for certain health, family, and safety-related reasons.

Employers operating in Maryland should understand the law's requirements for paid and unpaid leave, accrual, permitted uses, recordkeeping, and employee notification.

Which Maryland Employers Must Provide Paid Sick and Safe Leave?

Under Maryland's statewide law, employers with 15 or more employees generally must provide eligible employees with paid earned sick and safe leave.

Employers with 14 or fewer employees generally must provide eligible employees with unpaid earned sick and safe leave.

Employer size is determined under the applicable statutory rules. Certain employees and employment arrangements may be excluded from coverage.

How Does Maryland Sick and Safe Leave Accrue?

Eligible employees generally accrue earned sick and safe leave at a rate of at least one hour for every 30 hours worked.

Under the statewide law, employers may generally limit leave accrual to 40 hours per year and total available leave to 64 hours at a time. Employees may generally carry over up to 40 hours of unused earned sick and safe leave, subject to statutory exceptions.

Employers may also use a permitted frontloading method rather than requiring employees to accrue leave throughout the year.

What Can Maryland Sick and Safe Leave Be Used For?

Eligible employees may use earned sick and safe leave for qualifying reasons, including:

• Care or treatment of an employee's mental or physical illness, injury, or condition.
• Preventive medical care for the employee or a qualifying family member.
• Care for a qualifying family member with a mental or physical illness, injury, or condition.
• Maternity or paternity leave.
• Qualifying absences related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking involving the employee or a qualifying family member.

Employers should consult the law's definitions and requirements when evaluating leave requests.

Which Employees May Be Excluded?

Maryland's law contains exclusions and special provisions affecting certain workers and employment arrangements.

Examples may include employees who regularly work fewer than 12 hours per week, certain independent contractors, and some agricultural, construction, or as-needed healthcare workers, depending on the applicable statutory conditions.

Employers should not assume an employee is excluded solely because of a job title or employment classification.

When Can Employees Begin Using Earned Leave?

Maryland law generally permits employers to require an employee to wait 106 calendar days after beginning employment before using accrued earned sick and safe leave.

Employers must also follow applicable requirements concerning employee notice, scheduling, and documentation.

Maryland Sick and Safe Leave Recordkeeping Requirements

Covered employers must maintain records concerning earned sick and safe leave accrual and use for at least three years.

Employers should also provide required employee notices and maintain policies that accurately explain available leave benefits.

Are Employers Required to Display a Maryland Sick and Safe Leave Notice?

Maryland employers must provide employees with the required information about earned sick and safe leave rights. The Maryland Department of Labor provides official guidance and notice materials.

Employers should review applicable state requirements and determine whether additional local workplace notices are necessary.

Visit our Maryland Labor Law Posters page for additional workplace posting information and available products.

Maryland Local Sick Leave Requirements

Employers should also evaluate whether local laws affect their obligations. Montgomery County, Maryland, has its own earned sick and safe leave requirements, which may differ from the statewide law.

Businesses operating in multiple Maryland jurisdictions should review the requirements applicable to each work location.

Keeping Maryland Workplace Notices Current

Employment laws and workplace notice requirements may change through legislation, regulations, and agency updates.

Labor Law Compliance Center provides State and Federal Combination Labor Law Posters to help employers organize applicable workplace notices.

Employers can also explore our Poster Replacement Plan for assistance maintaining updated workplace posters when applicable posting requirements change.

For additional information, visit the Maryland Department of Labor's Earned Sick and Safe Leave resources.

Compliance note: This article provides general information about Maryland's earned sick and safe leave law. Coverage, exceptions, and obligations depend on the applicable facts and law. Employers should consult current official guidance when determining their responsibilities.