A5674

An Act concerning the use of sick leave for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 and amending and supplementing various part so the statutory law.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. N.J.S.11A:6-5 is amended to read as follows:

11A:6-5. Sick leave. a. Full-time State and political subdivision employees shall receive a sick leave credit of no less than one working day for each completed month of service during the remainder of the first calendar year of service and 15 working days in every year thereafter. Unused sick leave shall accumulate without limit.

b. (1) In addition to the 15 working days of sick leave provided under subsection a. of this section, full-time State and political subdivision employees shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to eight hours to be used for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019. If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to eight hours; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to four hours. An employer may require an employee to provide documentation that the leave used was for the purpose of obtaining the vaccination.

(2) In addition to the sick leave credit provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection, full-time State and political subdivision employees shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to two working days to be used for the purpose of recovering from an adverse reaction or side effect of taking a vaccine. If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to two working days; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for one working day. An employer may require the employee to certify, without requiring the employee to provide supporting documentation, that the employee is unwell and unable to work to use this credit.

Nothing in this paragraph (2) shall prevent an eligible employee from using other available paid sick leave or unpaid leave for additional time to recover from the vaccine.

(cf: N.J.S.11A:6-5)

2. Section 2 of P.L.2018, c.10 (C.34:11D-2) is amended to read as follows:

2. a. Each employer shall provide earned sick leave to each employee working for the employer in the State. For every 30 hours worked, the employee shall accrue one hour of earned sick leave,

except that an employer may provide an employee with the full complement of earned sick leave for a benefit year, as required under this section, on the first day of each benefit year in accordance with subsection c. or subsection d. of section 3 of this act. The employer shall not be required to permit the employee to accrue or use in any benefit year, or carry forward from one benefit year to the next, more than 40 hours of earned sick leave. Unless the employee has accrued earned sick leave prior to the effective date of this act, the earned sick leave shall begin to accrue on the effective date of this act for any employee who is hired and commences employment before the effective date of this act and the employee shall be eligible to use the earned sick leave beginning on the 120th calendar day after the employee commences employment, and if the employment commences after the effective date of this act, the earned sick leave shall begin to accrue upon the date that employment commences and the employee shall be eligible to use the earned sick leave beginning on the 120th calendar day after the employee commences employment, unless the employer agrees to an earlier date. The employee may subsequently use earned sick leave as soon as it is accrued.

b. An employer shall be in compliance with this section if the employer offers paid time off, which is fully paid and shall include, but is not limited to personal days, vacation days, and sick days, and may be used for the purposes of section 3 of this act in the manner provided by this act, and is accrued at a rate equal to or greater than the rate described in this section.

c. The employer shall pay the employee for earned sick leave at the same rate of pay with the same benefits as the employee normally earns, except that the pay rate shall not be less than the minimum wage required for the employee pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1966, c.113 (C.34:11-56a4).

d. Upon the mutual consent of the employee and employer, an employee may voluntarily choose to work additional hours or shifts during the same or following pay period, in lieu of hours or shifts missed, but shall not be required to work additional hours or shifts or use accrued earned sick leave. An employer may not require, as a condition of an employee's using earned sick leave, that the employee search for or find a replacement worker to cover the hours during which the employee is using earned sick leave.

e. If an employee is transferred to a separate division, entity, or location, but remains employed by the same employer, then the employee shall be entitled to all earned sick leave accrued at the prior division, entity, or location, and shall be entitled to use the accrued earned sick leave as provided in this act. If an employee is terminated, laid off, furloughed, or otherwise separated from employment with the employer, any unused accrued earned sick leave shall be reinstated upon the re-hiring or reinstatement of the employee to that employment, within six months of termination, being laid off or furloughed, or separation, and prior employment with the employer shall be counted towards meeting the eligibility requirements set forth in this section. When a different employer succeeds or takes the place of an existing employer, all employees of the original employer who remain employed by the successor employer are entitled to all of the earned sick leave they accrued when employed by the original employer, and are entitled to use the earned sick leave previously accrued immediately.

f. An employer may choose the increments in which its employees may use earned sick leave, provided that the largest increment of earned sick leave that an employee may be required to use for each shift for which earned sick leave is used shall be the number of hours the employee was scheduled to work during that shift.

g. (1) In addition to the 40 hours of earned sick leave provided under subsection a. of this section, each employee shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to eight hours to be used for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019, which shall be considered preventive care under section 3 of P.L.2018, c.10 (C.34:11D-3). If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to eight hours; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to four hours. An employer may require an employee to provide documentation that the leave used was for the purpose of obtaining the vaccination.

Nothing in this paragraph (2) shall prevent an eligible employee from using other available paid sick leave or unpaid leave for additional time to recover from the vaccine.

(cf: P.L.2018, c.10, s.2)

3. (New section) a. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, for officers or employees of a school board, or any agency or instrumentality thereof, in addition to any paid sick leave provided by law, each officer or employee shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to eight hours to be used for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019. If an employee or officer requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for up to eight hours; otherwise an employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for up to four hours. A board may require an employee or officer to provide documentation that the leave used was for the purpose of obtaining the vaccination.

b. In addition to the sick leave credit provided in subsection a. of this section, officers or employees of a school board, or any agency or instrumentality thereof, shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to two working days to be used for the purpose of recovering from an adverse reaction or side effect of taking a vaccine. If an employee or officer requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for up to two working days; otherwise an employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for one working day. An employer may require the employee to certify, without requiring the employee to provide supporting documentation, that the employee is unwell and unable to work to use this credit.

Nothing in this subsection b. shall prevent an eligible employee or officer from using other available paid sick leave or unpaid leave for additional time to recover from the vaccine.

4. (New section) a. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, for officers or employees of a political subdivision of the State, or any agency, authority or instrumentality thereof, that has not adopted the provisions of Title 11A, Civil Service, of the New Jersey Statutes, in addition to any paid sick leave provided by law, each officer or employee shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to eight hours to be used for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019. If an employee or officer requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for up to eight hours; otherwise an employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for up to four hours. An employer may require the employee or officer to provide documentation that the leave used was for the purpose of obtaining the vaccination.

b. In addition to the sick leave credit provided in subsection a. of this section, officers or employees of a political subdivision of the State, or any agency, authority or instrumentality thereof, that has not adopted the provisions of Title 11A, Civil Service, of the New Jersey Statutes, shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to two working days to be used for the purpose of recovering from an adverse reaction or side effect of taking a vaccine. If an employee or officer requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for up to two working days; otherwise an employee or officer shall be entitled to a credit for one working day. An employer may require the employee to certify, without requiring the employee to provide supporting documentation, that the employee is unwell and unable to work to use this credit.

Nothing in this subsection b. shall prevent an eligible employee or officer from using other available paid sick leave or unpaid leave for additional time to recover from the vaccine.

5. (New section) a. As used in this section, "independent State authority" means a public authority, board, commission, corporation, or other agency or instrumentality of the State, including a regional authority, and shall include a college or university.

b. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, in addition to any paid sick leave provided by law, public employees of an independent State authority who are not subject to the provisions of Title 11A (Civil Service) of the New Jersey Statutes shall receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to eight hours to be used for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019. If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to eight hours; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for four hours. An employer may require an employee to provide documentation that the leave used was for the purpose of obtaining the vaccination.

c. In addition to the sick leave credit provided in subsection b. of this section, public employees of an independent State authority who are not subject to the provisions of Title 11A (Civil Service) of the New Jersey Statutes shall receive a one- paid sick leave credit of up to two working days to be used for the purpose of recovering from an adverse reaction or side effect of taking a vaccine. If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to two working days; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for one working day. An employer may require the employee to certify, without requiring the employee to provide supporting documentation, that the employee is unwell and unable to work to use this credit.

Nothing in this subsection c. shall prevent an eligible employee from using other available paid sick leave or unpaid leave for additional time to recover from the vaccine.

6. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill requires all public and private employers in the State to provide employees with a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to eight hours to be used for the purpose of obtaining a vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019. If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee shall be entitled to a credit for up to eight hours; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for four hours. An employer may require an employee to provide documentation that the leave used was for the purpose of obtaining the vaccination.

In addition to the sick leave credit provided to obtain a vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019, all public and private employees will receive a one-time paid sick leave credit of up to two working days to be used for the purpose of recovering from an adverse reaction or side effect of taking a vaccine. If an employee requires two doses of a vaccine, the employee will be entitled to a credit for up to two working days; otherwise an employee shall be entitled to a credit for one working day. An employer may require the employee to certify, without requiring the employee to provide supporting documentation, that the employee is unwell and unable to work to use this credit.

Nothing in the bill will prevent an eligible employee from using other available paid sick leave or unpaid leave for additional time to recover from the vaccine.

The leave provided by this bill is in addition to sick leave currently provided by law.