Governor Newsom signed SB 83 this summer, extending the maximum period of paid family leave insurance (PFLI) wage replacement benefits from six to eight weeks beginning on July 1, 2020.
Although this is not currently an employer funded program (deductions are made from every CA employee’s paycheck) Individuals may use wage replacement funds from California’s state disability insurance (SDI) program:
- To care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling. or domestic partner.
- To bond with a minor child within one year of the birth or placement of the child through foster care or adoption.
This bill carries a lot of content and further action, including requiring the Governor to propose by November 2019 further benefit increases—in terms of duration and amount—and job protections for individuals receiving PFLI benefits. We’ll keep you posted on this one. There is a possibility that further paid time off and/or job protections will eventually come from employers’ pockets. July 2020 seems like a long way off, but so did July 2019 about 11 months ago….