Six Months After Paid Leave "Go Live," Connecticut's Employer Notice Requirement Takes Effect

by Armando Rodriguez, Esq - Product Compliance Counsel

& Marti Cardi, Esq. - Senior Compliance Consultant and Legal Counsel,

June 13, 2022

 

UPDATE - June 17, 2022

Many employers have been concerned about the short period of time to comply with this notice requirement. Even though it has been in the Connecticut PFML statute for a couple of years, details about the notice requirement were just released this month.

Well good things DO happen sometimes! Since we originally posted this article the Connecticut Department of Labor has informally stated that employer compliance by July 31, 2022, will be sufficient. Moreover, the DOL indicated that if a complaint was filed against an employer based solely on the fact that notices were not issued by July 1, then no action would be taken by the CTDOL based solely on that fact. We assume that should also read, “as long as the employer complied by July 31."

Still, that’s not a lot of time, so don’t delay! Get the notice into your new hire paperwork by July 31, and it’s still a good idea to send the notice to ALL employees soon – by July 31 seems to be a good target!

Starting July 1, 2022, employers must provide employees with notice of their rights to Connecticut leave and pay benefits. This comes six months after Connecticut's Paid Family and Medical Leave (CT PFML) program went live and after the state's Family and Medical Leave Act (CT FMLA) was updated to better align with the CT PFML.

Why the delay? Who knows, but it was built that way in the statute. And make no mistake, the delay in the notice requirement does not excuse any employer noncompliance with these two complex laws in the interim.

This notice must include:

  • The employee's entitlement to leave under the CT FMLA, including leave for victims of domestic violence
  • The employee's right to file for payment under the CT PFML
  • That retaliation by the employer against the employee for requesting, applying for, or using CT FMLA is prohibited
  • The employee can file a complaint for any violations with the Labor Commissioner

Employers must provide their employees with the required notice at the time of hiring, and annually from then on. The Connecticut Department of Labor recently provided an optional prototype notice. You can find a copy here. You will notice the prototype contains significantly more information than the strict requirements of the statute listed above.

So exactly what must a Connecticut employer do as of July 1, 2022?

The statute does not contain any requirement to give the notice when an employee alerts the employer to the possible need for covered leave – nor is there a requirement to give all employees notice on or by July 1. Rather:

  • The notice is required for new employees hired on or after July 1, 2022, at the time of hire.
  • The notice is required "annually thereafter." This seems to create a gap allowing employers not to give any notice to employees hired before July 1.But we don't recommend adopting that interpretation. Clearly, the intent is to provide all employees periodic (annual) notice of their rights to job protected leave and pay benefits.

So we recommend:

  • Although notice is required, the prototype is not a required form for that notice; you can modify it to fit your culture or leave processes.
  • Review the prototype notice and if desired, add your company branding and any additional information you want employees to have relating to the Connecticut leave and pay benefits and your company policies. Look at the section entitled APPLYING FOR INCOME-REPLACEMENT BENEFITS UNDER CTPL on page 2:
    • If you have a private plan to provide the paid leave benefits, include information in the notice informing employees how to apply for benefits.
    • If you use the state plan, you can eliminate the general info in the prototype about private plans.
  • Once you have the form the way you want it (and ensure it is still compliant), include it in your new hire packet for employees hired on or after July 1, 2022.
  • Select a date (we recommend not too long after July 1) to provide the notice to all employees annually.
  • Optional actions to consider:
    • Include the notice in your employee handbook for Connecticut employees
    • Post the notice in your physical workplace(s) with other required employee notices and/or on your company intranet.

MATRIX CAN HELP!

Be it updates to state leave laws or the latest and greatest when it comes to new PFML programs, Matrix is here to help you stay on top of the changes. For more information about our solutions, please contact your Matrix or Reliance Standard account manager, or reach us at ping@matrixcos.com.