S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 1
These are sample policies for employers who have determined that their
employees are covered by the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act.
M a r y l a n d S a m p l e E a r n e d S i c k a n d S a f e L e a v e
P o l i c i e s
Overview
The Maryland Healthy Working Families Act requires that employers with 15 or more employees
provide paid sick and safe leave for certain employees. It also requires that employers who employ
14 or fewer employees provide unpaid sick and safe leave for certain employees. In determining
whether an employer is required to provide paid or unpaid earned sick and safe leave under the
law, the number of employees is determined by calculating the average monthly number of
employees during the immediately preceding year without regard to whether the employee is full-
time, part-time, temporary, or seasonal.
The law requires that the Commissioner of Labor and Industry develop a model policy. The law
provides that employers may:
1. award earned sick and safe leave at the beginning of the year; or
2. allow earned sick and safe leave to be accrued during the year.
The Commissioner has developed two different policies based upon the approach chosen by an
employer, as well as a third policy for restaurant employers with tipped employees:
Attachment A The policy for employers awarding earned sick and safe leave at the beginning
of the year (page 2)
Attachment B The policy for employers allowing earned sick and safe leave to accrue
throughout the year (page 4)
Attachment C The policy for tipped employees (employers with tipped employees who work
in the restaurant industry have unique provisions) (page 7)
These model policies set forth the minimum requirements under the Maryland Healthy Working
Families Act. For additional information on the law, please go to labor.maryland.gov/paidleave/
or the text the law itself which can be found in §§ 3-1301 through 3-1311 of the Labor and
Employment Article of the Maryland Annotated Code. An employer will need to customize its
policy to reflect whether its employees are entitled to paid or unpaid sick leave as well as choose
certain options which are indicated in the respective model policies.
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 2
A T T A C H M E N T A
Sample Policy for Employers Awarding Earned Sick and Safe Leave at
the Beginning of the Year
Pursuant to Maryland law, employees are entitled to earn sick and safe leave at the rate of 1 hour
for every 30 hours that an employee works up to a maximum of 40 hours. To comply with the law,
employees will be awarded forty (40) hours of paid/unpaid sick leave at the beginning of each
year. The year commences on and ends on . The terms under which employees
are permitted to use this leave are set forth below. Employees are not permitted to carry over any
unused leave at the end of the year.
Employees will not be paid for any unused sick and safe leave upon termination of employment. If
an employee leaves employment and is rehired within 37 weeks of leaving, any earned and unused
sick leave that the employee had at the time of separation will be reinstated.
Leave Usage
Employees are not permitted to use leave during the first 106 calendar days of their employment.
An employee is allowed to use earned sick and safe leave under the following conditions:
To care for or treat the employee’s mental or physical illness, injury or condition;
To obtain preventative medical care for the employee or the employee’s family member;
To care for a family member with a mental or physical illness, injury or condition;
For maternity or paternity leave; or
The absence from work is necessary due to domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking
committed against the employee or the employee’s family member and the leave is being
used: (1) to obtain medical or mental health attention; (2) to obtain services from a victim
services organization; (3) for legal services or proceedings; or (4) because the employee
has temporarily relocated as a result of the domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.
A family member includes a spouse, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling or legal
guardian. For a complete list of family members included under the law, please see §3-1301(G) of
the Labor and Employment Article of the Maryland Annotated Code.
Employees are permitted to use the leave in increments of not less than hours [Employer
Option but note that the minimum increment may not exceed 4 hours].
If the need to use sick and safe leave is foreseeable (for example a scheduled doctor’s
appointment), the employee must provide notice 7 days prior to leave use. Notice must be given
[Employer Option to insert the desired method of notice] and directed to
. [Employer Option complete to whom]
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
If the need to use leave is not foreseeable, the employee must provide notice as soon as
practicable.
A request for earned sick and safe leave may be denied if the employee fails to provide proper
notice and the employee’s absence will cause a disruption to the employer.
Employees may only use earned sick and safe leave for one of the listed authorized reasons.
Employees using earned sick and safe leave for unauthorized purposes or who have demonstrated
a pattern of abusing sick and safe leave may be denied the right to use earned sick and safe leave
If an employee uses sick and safe leave for more than two consecutive scheduled shifts, the
employee must provide verification that the leave use was appropriate.
As indicated above, employees may not use sick and safe leave for the first 106 days of their
employment. Employees who wish to use leave between the 107
th
through the 120
th
calendar days
after beginning employment must provide verification that the leave use was appropriate as
agreed upon at the time of hire. [Employer Option: To require this verification of use between
107th and 120th days, employer and employee must have mutually agreed at the time of hire that
the employee would provide such verification].
[THE FOLLOWING SECTION APPLIES ONLY TO PRIVATE EMPLOYERS LICENSED UNDER
TITLE 7 OR TITLE 10 OF THE HEALTH GENERAL ARTICLE TO PROVIDE SERVICES TO
DEVELOPMENTALLY DISABLED OR MENTALLY ILL INDIVIDUALS]
Employees may be denied sick and safe leave use if (1) the need to use earned sick and safe leave
was foreseeable; (2) the employer is unable to find a suitable replacement for the employee after
exercising reasonable diligence; and (3) the employee’s absence will cause a disruption of service
to at least one individual with a developmental disability or mental illness.
Statement of Earned Sick and Safe Leave
With each pay period, employees will be provided with a statement of leave used and available
leave.
[THIS MAY BE PROVIDED THROUGH AN ONLINE ELECTRONIC SYSTEM]
Notice
An employer is required to notify its employees that the employee is entitled to earned sick and
safe leave along with an explanation of how earned sick and safe leave accrue and the purposes for
which the leave may be used. Maryland law prohibits an employer from taking adverse action
against an employee for exercising their rights under this law as well as prohibits an employee
from making a complaint, bringing an action or testifying in an action in bad faith.
Questions
The Commissioner of Labor and Industry has oversight of issues
related to earned sick and safe leave. The Commissioner may be
contacted at ssl.assistance@maryland.gov.
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 3
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 4
A T T A C H M E N T B
Sample Policy for Employers Who Allow Employees to Accrue Leave
Throughout the Year
Pursuant to Maryland law, employees are entitled to earn sick and safe leave at the rate of 1 hour
for every 30 hours that an employee works up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. The year
commences on and ends on . An employee accrues earned sick and safe leave
at a rate of at least one hour for every 30 hours the employee works, however, an employee is not
entitled to earn more than 40 hours of sick and safe leave in a year.
An employee is not entitled to earn sick and safe leave during:
(1) a two-week pay period in which the employee worked fewer than 24 hours total;
(2) a one-week pay period if the employee worked fewer than a combined total of 24 hours in
the current and preceding pay period; or
(3) a pay period in which the employee is paid twice per month and the employee worked
fewer than 26 hours in the pay period.
An employee who is exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act is
assumed to work 40 hours per week.
An employee may carry over any earned but unused sick and safe leave up to 40 hours but an
employee may not accrue more than 64 hours of sick and safe leave at any time.
Employees will not be paid for any unused sick and safe leave upon termination of employment. If
an employee leaves employment and is rehired within 37 weeks of leaving, any earned and unused
sick leave that the employee had at the time of separation will be reinstated.
Leave Usage
Employees are not permitted to use leave during the first 106 calendar days of their employment.
An employee is allowed to use earned sick and safe leave under the following conditions:
To care for or treat the employee’s mental or physical illness, injury or condition;
To obtain preventative medical care for the employee or the employee’s family member;
To care for a family member with a mental or physical illness, injury or condition;
For maternity or paternity leave; or
The absence from work is necessary due to domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking
committed against the employee or the employee’s family member and the leave is being
used: (1) to obtain medical or mental health attention; (2) to obtain services from a victim
services organization; (3) for legal services or proceedings; or (4) because the employee
has temporarily relocated as a result of the domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 5
A family member includes a spouse, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, or legal
guardian. For a complete list of family members included under the law, please see §3-1301(G) of
the Labor and Employment Article of the Maryland Annotated Code.
Employees are permitted to use the leave in increments of not less than hours [Employer
option but note that the minimum increment may not exceed 4 hours].
[Employer Option] An employee may use earned sick and safe leave before the leave has accrued
up to a maximum of hours. If an employee wishes to use leave before it has accrued, the
employee must sign an acknowledgement that any amount of earned sick and safe leave that is
paid before it has accrued will be deducted from wages paid to the employee if the employee
leaves employment prior to accrual.
If the need to use sick and safe leave is foreseeable (for example a scheduled doctor’s
appointment), the employee must provide notice 7 days prior to leave use. Notice must
be [Employer Option insert desired method of notice] and directed to .
[Employer option insert to whom] If the need to use leave is not foreseeable, the employee must
provide notice as soon as practicable.
A request for earned sick and safe leave may be denied if the employee fails to provide the
required notice and the employee’s absence will cause disruption to the employer.
Employees may only use earned sick and safe leave for one of the listed authorized reasons.
Employees using earned sick and safe leave for unauthorized purposes or who have demonstrated
a pattern of abusing sick and safe leave may be denied the right to use sick and safe leave in the
future.
If an employee uses sick and safe leave for more than two consecutive scheduled shifts, the
employee must provide verification that the leave use was appropriate.
As indicated above, employees may not use sick and safe leave for the first 106 days of their
employment. Employees who wish to use leave between the 107
th
through the 120
th
calendar days
after beginning employment must provide verification that the leave use was appropriate as
agreed upon at the time of hire. [Employer Option: To require this verification of use between
107th and 120th days, employer and employee must have mutually agreed at the time of hire that
the employee would provide such verification].
[THE FOLLOWING SECTION APPLIES ONLY TO PRIVATE EMPLOYERS LICENSED UNDER
TITLE 7 OR TITLE 10 OF THE HEALTH GENERAL ARTICLE TO PROVIDE SERVICES TO
DEVELOPMENTALLY DISABLED OR MENTALLY ILL INDIVIDUALS]
Employees may be denied sick and safe leave use if (1) the need to use earned sick and safe leave
was foreseeable; (2) the employer is unable to find a suitable replacement for the employee after
exercising reasonable diligence; and (3) the employee’s absence will cause a disruption of service
to at least one individual with a developmental disability or mental illness.
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 6
Statement of Earned Sick and Safe Leave
With each pay period, employees will be provided with a statement of leave used and available
leave.
[THIS MAY BE PROVIDED THROUGH AN ONLINE ELECTRONIC SYSTEM]
Notice
An employer is required to notify its employees that the employee is entitled to earned sick and
safe leave along with an explanation of how earned sick and safe leave accrue and the purposes for
which the leave may be used. Maryland law prohibits an employer from taking adverse action
against an employee for exercising their rights under this law as well as prohibits an employee
from making a complaint, bringing an action or testifying in an action in bad faith.
Questions
The Commissioner of Labor and Industry has oversight of issues
related to earned sick and safe leave. The Commissioner may be
contacted at ssl.assistance@maryland.gov.
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 7
A T T A C H M E N T C
Sample Policy for Restaurant Employers with Tipped Employees
This policy applies to an employee who is employed in a restaurant industry and who is
compensated as a tipped employee. Pursuant to Maryland law, employees are entitled to earn sick
and safe leave at the rate of 1 hour for every 30 hours that an employee works up to a maximum of
40 hours per year. The year commences on and ends on . An employee accrues
earned sick and safe leave at a rate of at least one hour for every 30 hours the employee works,
however, an employee is not entitled to earn more than 40 hours of sick and safe leave in a year.
An employee may carry over any earned but unused sick and safe leave but an employee may not
accrue more than 64 hours of sick and safe leave at any time. An employee who is exempt from
the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act is assumed to work 40 hours per week.
Employees will not be paid for any unused sick and safe leave upon termination of employment. If
an employee leaves employment and is rehired within 37 weeks of leaving, any earned and unused
sick leave that the employee had at the time of separation will be reinstated.
An employee is not entitled to earn sick and safe leave during:
(1) a two-week pay period in which the employee worked fewer than 24 hours total;
(2) a one-week pay period if the employee worked fewer than a combined total of 24 hours in
the current and preceding pay period; or
(3) a pay period in which the employee is paid twice per month and the employee worked
fewer than 26 hours in the pay period.
Leave Usage
Tipped employees using paid sick and safe leave will be paid at the minimum wage rate that is in
effect at the time the leave is taken.
Employees are not permitted to use leave during the first 106 calendar days of employment.
An employee is allowed to use earned sick and safe leave under the following conditions:
To care for or treat the employee’s mental or physical illness, injury or condition;
To obtain preventative medical care for the employee or the employee’s family member;
To care for a family member with a mental or physical illness, injury or condition;
For maternity or paternity leave; or
The absence from work is necessary due to domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking
committed against the employee or the employee’s family member and the leave is being
used: (1) to obtain medical or mental health attention; (2) to obtain services from a victim
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 8
services organization; (3) for legal services or proceedings; or (4) because the employee has
temporarily relocated as a result of the domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.
A family member includes a spouse, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling or legal
guardian. For a complete list of family members included under the law, please see §3-1301(G) of
the Labor and Employment Article of the Maryland Annotated Code.
Employees are permitted to use the leave in increments of not less than hours [Employer
option but please note that this minimum increment may not exceed 4 hours].
[Employer Option] An employee may use earned sick and safe leave before the leave has accrued
up to a maximum of hours. If an employee wishes to use leave before it has accrued, the
employee must sign an acknowledgement that any amount of earned sick and safe leave that is
paid before it has accrued will be deducted from wages paid to the employee if the employee
leaves employment prior to accrual.
If the need to use sick and safe leave is foreseeable (for example a scheduled doctor’s
appointment), the employee must provide notice 7 days prior to leave use. Notice must
be [Employer Option insert desired method of notice] and directed to .
[Employer option insert to whom] If the need to use leave is not foreseeable, the employee must
provide notice as soon as practicable.
A request for earned sick and safe leave may be denied if the employee fails to provide the
required notice and the employee’s absence will cause disruption to the employer.
Employees may only use earned sick and safe leave for one of the listed authorized reasons.
Employees using earned sick and safe leave for unauthorized purposes or who have demonstrated
a pattern of abusing sick and safe leave may be denied the right to use sick and safe leave in the
future.
If an employee uses sick and safe leave for more than two consecutive scheduled shifts, the
employee must provide verification that the leave use was appropriate.
As indicated above, employees may not use sick and safe leave for the first 106 days of their
employment. Employees who wish to use leave between the 107
th
through the 120
th
calendar days
after beginning employment must provide verification that the leave use was appropriate as
agreed upon at the time of hire. {Employer Option: To require this verification of use between
107th and 120th days, employer and employee must have mutually agreed at the time of hire that
the employee would provide such verification].
Alternate Shifts in Lieu of Paid Sick and Safe Leave for Tipped Employees
If a tipped employee needs to use earned sick and safe leave during a regularly scheduled shift,
the employee may request the opportunity to work additional hours or trade shifts with another
employee in lieu of taking paid leave. Such a request must be in writing and directed to .
Where feasible such a request will be granted. However, the employer reserves the right to deny
S A M P L E P O L I C I E S
CONTACT | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
PAGE 9
such a request in which case the employee will be paid the current minimum wage rate for those
hours that the employee uses earned sick and safe leave.
Statement of Earned Sick and Safe Leave
With each pay period, employees will be provided with a statement of leave used and available
leave.
[THIS MAY BE PROVIDED THROUGH AN ONLINE ELECTRONIC SYSTEM]
Notice
An employer is required to notify its employees that the employee is entitled to earned sick and
safe leave along with an explanation of how earned sick and safe leave accrue and the purposes for
which the leave may be used. Maryland law prohibits an employer from taking adverse action
against an employee for exercising their rights under this law as well as prohibits an employee
from making a complaint, bringing an action or testifying in an action in bad faith.
Questions
The Commissioner of Labor and Industry has oversight of issues
related to earned sick and safe leave. The Commissioner may be
contacted at ssl.assistance@maryland.gov
