After three years of preparation, the District of Columbia’s Universal Paid Leave Amendment Act of 2016 goes live this Wednesday, July 1. The law enables eligible employees who work in D.C. to take paid leave for certain family and medical purposes. Earlier this year, the D.C. Department of Employment Services, which will administer the program, suggested that the leave benefits portion of the statute might be delayed due to COVID-19. However, this possibility did not come to pass, and benefits will be available to eligible employees starting this Wednesday as planned.

Funded by D.C.’s “Universal Paid Leave Fund,” which began receiving employer contributions on July 1, 2019, the Act enables covered employees to take:

  • Eight weeks of paid time off when they become new parents;
  • Six weeks to take care of a family member who has been diagnosed with a serious health condition; and
  • Two weeks for the employee’s own serious health condition.

The law also requires that the Paid Family Leave Employee Notice be posted in all covered D.C. workplaces. Additional details on this law can be found here: Paid Family Leave Law Approved by D.C. Council in Veto-Proof Vote and here: District of Columbia Marks Start of July with Paid Family Leave Taxes.

All D.C. employers should revisit their leave policies to ensure coordination between their existing leave policies and these new benefits. Employers who voluntarily offer paid leave benefits should be particularly careful to spell out how that leave synchronizes with these new requirements. In addition, the requirements of the PFL law should be included in management training, and employers should ensure that their HR and payroll staff are familiar with these new rules. If you have questions or concerns about this or other workplace developments, please contact the Jackson Lewis attorneys with whom you work.

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Photo of Teresa Burke Wright Teresa Burke Wright

Teresa Wright is a principal in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis P.C.

She is a seasoned litigator, having represented employers ranging in size from eight to 18,000 employees in litigation, and administrative proceedings. She helps clients on a daily basis…

Teresa Wright is a principal in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis P.C.

She is a seasoned litigator, having represented employers ranging in size from eight to 18,000 employees in litigation, and administrative proceedings. She helps clients on a daily basis to comply with state and federal employment laws and navigate challenging workplace law issues. She provides practical business advice based on “best practices” and is a sought-after speaker and trainer on employment law topics.

Teresa was the litigation manager of the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis from 2005 until 2014. As the litigation manager, she served as the office’s local expert on litigation questions, monitored litigation trends, educated the D.C. office attorneys on developments in workplace litigation, and assigned and tracked litigation within the office, while managing her own caseload.

Teresa also is active in the firm’s Disability, Leave and Health Management practice group. In that capacity, Teresa acts as a regional and national expert on employee health and leave issues facing employers, including issues arising under the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, and similar state and local laws, such as the D.C. Sick and Safe Leave Act and Maryland Healthy Working Families Act.

Teresa counsels employers daily regarding such employment issues as employee discipline and termination; discrimination and harassment; preparation of employment contracts; drafting personnel policies and handbooks; and investigation of employee misconduct. She is an expert on issues arising under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act and similar state and local laws, and is part of her firm’s task force on independent contractor misclassification.