New Jersey Earned Sick Leave (ESL)

Under the ESL requirements, employers of all sizes must provide full-time, part-time and temporary employees with up to 40 hours of earned sick leave per year. This earned sick leave is paid at the employee's regular rate of pay, or, for an employee whose pay fluctuates, according to the employee's average total earnings, exclusive of overtime pay, for the seven most recent working days. Employees accrue one hour of earned sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours of leave per benefit year. A part-time employee who works 15 hours a week accrues 1 hour of sick leave after 2 weeks of work. Employers who violate the PSL law can be subject to significant administrative, civil, and potentially criminal charges. Many employers are now using a PTO policy which bundles various types of leave, such as vacation, sick, and personal leave, into a single bank that employees can use for any purpose.

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