Sick Leave Expanded for Eligible Service Workers
Effective October 1, 2023, Connecticut’s sick and safe leave law (sick leave) will be expanded to add additional covered uses for eligible service workers. As a reminder, the state’s sick leave law covers employers with at least 50 employees and covers services workers (e.g., dental hygienists, cooks, security guards, barbers, and cashiers). To determine the employee count, all employees are counted, not just service workers.
Beginning in October, service workers may use sick leave for a mental health wellness day, defined as a day an individual attends to their emotional and psychological well-being instead of working their regularly scheduled shift. Also, in addition to being able to take safe leave if a service worker is a victim of family violence or sexual assault, they will be able to take leave if they are a parent or a guardian of a child who is a victim of family violence or sexual assault to attend to the child’s medical care or psychological or other counseling for a physical or psychological injury or disability, or to participate in a civil or criminal proceeding related to or resulting from family violence or sexual assault.
