Paid Family Leave: The Name Is Misleading
Estimated read time: 6 minutes
Key Takeaways
Paid Family Leave is wage replacement—not a leave of absence.
Eligible employees may receive approximately 70% to 90% of their wages for up to eight weeks.
PFL may provide benefits for bonding, family caregiving or qualifying military events.
PFL does not provide job protection.
Employers must separately determine whether an absence is protected under CFRA, FMLA or another applicable law or policy.
PFL eligibility and job-protected leave eligibility are two separate determinations.
Resource: Paid Family Leave Fact Sheet
“Paid Family Leave” sounds like a law that gives employees permission to take time away from work. That is understandable—but it is not quite accurate. Here is what California employers need to know.
What Does Paid Family Leave Provide?
California’s Employment Development Department administers PFL. Eligible employees may receive approximately 70% to 90% of their wages for up to eight weeks within a 12-month period.
Benefits may be available when an employee experiences wage loss because they are taking time away from work to:
Bond with a new child through birth, adoption or foster-care placement;
Care for a seriously ill family member; or
Participate in a qualifying event related to a family member’s military deployment.
Covered family members for caregiving purposes include a child, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse or registered domestic partner.
Employees may generally use the benefits all at once or divide them into separate periods. Bonding benefits must be used within the first 12 months after the child’s birth or placement.
What Paid Family Leave Does Not Provide
PFL does not provide job protection.
Instead, job protection or an entitlement to time away from work may come from another law or employer policy, such as:
The California Family Rights Act (CFRA);
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA);
Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL);
A reasonable accommodation requirement;
An employer’s personal-leave policy; or
Another applicable state or local leave law.
This means employers must make two separate determinations:
Is the employee eligible for wage-replacement benefits through PFL?
Is the employee’s absence protected or otherwise available under an applicable leave law or policy?
The EDD generally determines whether an employee qualifies for PFL benefits. The employer is responsible for determining which leave laws and workplace policies apply to the absence.
An employee may qualify for PFL payments without qualifying for job-protected leave. Conversely, an employee may qualify for job-protected leave even if they do not qualify for PFL benefits.
For a broader explanation of how overlapping leave laws work, read Leave of Absence 101 for Santa Barbara Small Businesses.
Who May Be Eligible for PFL Benefits?
An employee may qualify if they paid into California State Disability Insurance—often identified as CASDI on a paystub—and earned at least $300 during the applicable base period.
Eligibility for PFL benefits is generally not determined by how long the employee has worked for their current employer. Citizenship and immigration status also do not determine eligibility.
Certain self-employed individuals and independent contractors may qualify if they participate in California’s Disability Insurance Elective Coverage program.
These requirements are different from the service-hour, length-of-employment and employer-size requirements that may apply under job-protection laws such as CFRA or FMLA.
Can Employees Use Other Paid Time Off?
An employer may allow an employee to supplement PFL benefits with vacation, sick leave, paid time off or another available paid-leave benefit. Depending on the circumstances, this may allow the employee to receive up to 100% of their regular wages.
Employers should carefully coordinate these payments through payroll. PFL benefits, employer-provided paid time and job-protected leave may run concurrently, but they serve different purposes and should be documented separately.
For additional information about California pay practices and related compliance risks, read Top 5 Wage Violations.
When Should Employees Apply?
Employees may apply through the EDD online or by mail. A claim should not be filed before the first day of family leave and generally must be submitted no later than 41 days after the leave begins.
Supporting documentation may be required depending on whether the claim involves bonding, caregiving or military assistance.
What Should Employers Do?
When an employee requests time away for bonding, caregiving or military-related reasons, employers should avoid treating “PFL” as the complete answer.
Instead, employers should:
Ask enough questions to identify the reason for the absence;
Determine whether CFRA, FMLA or another leave law applies;
Provide all required notices and forms;
Explain the distinction between wage replacement and job protection;
Coordinate applicable paid benefits and employer-provided leave;
Document the leave designation and expected duration; and
Avoid discouraging an employee from applying for benefits.
The Bottom Line
Despite its name, California Paid Family Leave is not a stand-alone leave of absence. It is a state-administered benefit that replaces part of an eligible employee’s lost wages while the employee is away from work for a qualifying family reason.
Employers should evaluate the employee’s right to time off separately from their eligibility to receive PFL payments. Keeping those two questions distinct can prevent incorrect leave decisions, inconsistent communication and unnecessary compliance risk.
For more information, visit the California EDD’s Paid Family Leave and FMLA and CFRA FAQ pages.
Need Help?
Managing employee leaves can become complicated when PFL, CFRA, FMLA, disability accommodations, paid time off and employer policies overlap.
Shomari McLemore earned the Disability Management Compliance Specialist (DMCS) certification through the Insurance Education Association (IEA). The California-focused program provides practical training in navigating overlapping disability and leave laws, including ADA, FEHA, FMLA, CFRA, Pregnancy Disability Leave and workers’ compensation.
Disclaimer
This article is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as a substitute for guidance from qualified legal counsel. Employment laws and agency guidance may change, and their application depends on the specific facts and circumstances of each situation
