In a unanimous decision the California Appeals Court recently ruled that California's "kin care" statute does not apply to all compensated time off for illness, but is limited to accrued sick leave.
In McCarther v. Pacific Bell Telesis Group et al., 2010 DJDAR 2487, the plaintiffs alleged that the employer violated Labor Code § 233 by failing to provide paid sick leave to employees caring for sick relatives.
Labor Code § 233 requires employers that provide sick leave to permit their employees to use, in any calendar year, up to half their accrued annual sick leave to attend to the employee's ill child, parent, spouse, or domestic partner.
The Court of Appeals had to decide whether the legislature intended to broadly define "sick leave" to include all compensated time off for illness, or merely a narrower definition of only accrued sick leave.
The policy at issue compensated employees only for an employee's own illness or injury, for up to five consecutive days of absence. The policy did not provide employees with accrued paid sick leave. Thus, the Court of Appeals ruled that the employer's policy did not fall within the scope of Labor Code § 233, and, more importantly, that the statute's reach was solely limited to accrual-based sick leave policies, not uncapped sickness absence policies.
The ruling is favorable for those California employers that do not have accrued sick leave policies, as they will have more flexibility in dealing with employee sick leave issues. Nevertheless, employers should review their leave policies, including their sick leave policies, to ensure that the policies comply with applicable California and federal employment laws.
