Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York

Under emergency laws passed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, you must be given paid sick time if you are unable to work for several qualifying reasons:

• You are under a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order for COVID-19;
• You have been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to COVID-19;
• You are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and seeking a medical diagnosis.

If you are able to work remotely, then you are “able to work” and do not qualify for sick leave.

Coverage depends on the type and size of your employer:

• If you work for a public employer (such as New York State, a city or local government, or a governmental agency), your employer is covered.
• If you work for a private employer, your employer is covered by the Federal law requiring paid sick leave if they have fewer than 500 employees.
• Larger employers are still covered by the New York State paid sick leave law, but you need a government quarantine order. If your doctor advises you to self-quarantine, ask for this in writing and apply for sick leave and a quarantine order. If you have questions about whether you qualify, call Legal Aid at (833) 628-0087.

If you work full-time, then you can get up to two weeks or 80 hours of leave. If you work part-time, then you can get up to the number of hours you work (on average) in two weeks.

• If you work for a private employer with fewer than 500 employees, you can get up to two weeks of leave at your regular rate of pay, up to $511 per day or a total of $5,110).
• If your normal pay rate is more than $511 per day, then you might be able to use New York State paid sick leave to make up the difference.
• If your employer has 500 or more employees, you can only get paid sick leave under the New York State law if you have a government quarantine order.
• If you have questions about how much pay you should be receiving, call Legal Aid at 1- (833) 628-0087.

Most of the benefits described above will be paid directly by your employer. You should call your employer and ask for paid leave time if you

• Have been given a government quarantine order;
• Have been diagnosed with COVID-19; or
• Are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.

If your employer denies your request, call Legal Aid at 1- (833) 628-0087.

Under emergency federal and New York State laws, you may be able to get paid family leave if you are unable to work because:

• You are caring for someone who has a government quarantine order or was advised to self-quarantine by a doctor;
• You are caring for a child whose school is closed or whose child care is unavailable for reasons related to COVID-19; or
• You are experiencing any a similar condition identified by the federal government.

If you are able to work remotely despite these conditions, you are not eligible for paid family leave.

Coverage depends on the type and size of your employer:

• If you work for a state or local public employer (such as New York State, a city or local government, or a governmental agency) you are covered.
• If you work for a private employer, your employer is covered by the Federal law if they have fewer than 500 employees.
• Larger employers are still covered by the New York State Paid Family Leave law. However, if you cannot work because you are caring for a child, you can only get paid leave if your child’s school or childcare is closed due to a government quarantine order.

If you have questions about whether you qualify, call Legal Aid at 1- (833) 628-0087.

• If you are caring for someone who has a government quarantine order or was advised to self-quarantine by a doctor, you can get up to 80 hours of leave if you work full-time. If you work part-time, you can get leave for the average number of hours you work over two weeks.
• If your child’s school or place of care is closed you can get up to 10 weeks of paid leave. If you work full-time, you can get up to 40 hours a week. If you work part-time, you can get the number of hours you would normally work over two weeks. This only applies if you have worked there at least 30 days, and it does not apply to most federal employees.
• If you work for a private employer with more than 500 employees, you may qualify for paid family leave under New York State law, which also allows for 10 weeks of paid leave.

How much paid leave you are entitled to depends on the size of your employer and whether it is private.

• If you work for a private employer with fewer than 500 employees, and you are caring for someone who has a government quarantine order or was advised to self-quarantine by a doctor, then you can get two weeks of leave at 2/3 your regular rate of pay, up to $200 per day ($2,000 in total).
• If you are caring for a child whose school or child care is closed for COVID-19 related reasons, you are entitled to two-thirds of your regular rate of pay, up to $200 per day for 10 weeks (up to $10,000 total). However, the first two weeks of this leave are unpaid.
• You are also eligible for leave in these situations if you work for a public employer, such as New York State, a local government, or a government agency.
• Most federal employees are not covered by the 10 week family leave law.
• If you work for a private employer with 500 or more employees, you may still apply for New York State family leave if you have to care for a sick family member, or if your child’s school is closed due to a government quarantine order. You would be eligible for up to 60% of your weekly wage (based on your last 8 weeks of pay), up to $840.70 per week.

If you have questions about how much pay you should be receiving, call Legal Aid at 1-(833) 628-0087

Paid sick leave is often paid directly by your employer. If you are applying for benefits under the New York State Paid Family Leave law, you will have to apply to your employer’s insurance carrier. You can look up the carrier here: https://on.ny.gov/2QK1KP5. If you cannot find your employer’s insurance carrier, call the Paid Family Leave Helpline for assistance at 1 (844) 337-6303. You can also call Legal Aid at 1- (833) 628-0087 for advice or if you are denied.