San Francisco’s Public Health Emergency Leave Ordinance

San Francisco’s new Public Health Emergency Leave Ordinance went into effect on October 1, 2022. A covered employer is a private employer with 100 or more employees, regardless of location. If you are a covered employer, this ordinance applies to all of your employees performing work in the City and the County of San Francisco. 

Covered employees are eligible for up to 80 hours of paid time off for a qualifying reason (listed below). Full time and part time employees with a regular schedule should receive the number of hours they regularly work in a two-week period. Contact your consulting team for assistance with employees working variable schedules. 

What are the qualifying reasons for this leave? Employees are eligible to use this paid time during a defined public health emergency. This includes “a local or state health emergency relating to any infectious disease, as declared by a local or state health official or when a Spare the Air Alert is in effect.”

If the public health criteria are met, an employee may take paid time off for a qualifying reason as stated in the ordinance: 

• The employee or their family member is unable to work due to the recommendations or requirements of a health order addressing the emergency

• the employee or their family member experiences symptoms of the disease causing the emergency or tests positive for the disease

• the employee primarily works outdoors and has heart or lung disease, has respiratory problems, is pregnant, or is at least 60 years old when a Spare the Air Alert is in effect

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Now is the time to ensure you have a process in place to comply with this new requirement. Contact your consulting team for guidance.