The Connecticut paid sick leave law requires most private-sector employers in the state to provide paid sick time to their employees, with coverage expanding each January through 2027. You earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year, and you can start using that time on your 120th calendar day of employment.
Who Is Covered
Coverage depends on how many employees your employer has in Connecticut during the payroll week that includes January 1 each year.1FindLaw. Connecticut Code 31-57r – Definitions The thresholds phase in:
- January 1, 2025: employers with 25 or more employees
- January 1, 2026: employers with 11 or more employees
- January 1, 2027: all employers with one or more employees
Public Act 24-8 rewrote the older, narrower statute that applied only to designated “service workers” at employers with 50 or more people. The term “service worker” is gone, replaced with “employee,” so job title and industry no longer control whether you qualify.2Connecticut General Assembly. Public Act No 24-8 – An Act Expanding Paid Sick Days in the State
A few workers are not covered. Seasonal employees who work 120 days or fewer in a year are excluded,1FindLaw. Connecticut Code 31-57r – Definitions as are members of a construction trade union participating in a multiemployer health plan, and self-employed individuals.
How You Earn and Use the Time
Accrual starts your first day. You earn one hour for every 30 hours worked, in one-hour increments, capped at 40 hours per year.3Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57s – Employer Requirement to Provide Sick Leave to Employees You cannot actually use any of the time until your 120th calendar day of employment, which works out to roughly four months.
Unused hours roll over, but with a ceiling. You can carry up to 40 accrued but unused hours into the next year, and even with a carryover balance you still cannot use more than 40 hours in any single year.3Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57s – Employer Requirement to Provide Sick Leave to Employees
Your employer can skip the accrual and carryover tracking by frontloading the full 40 hours at the start of each year, making the time immediately available.3Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57s – Employer Requirement to Provide Sick Leave to Employees An existing PTO or vacation policy also satisfies the law, as long as the time can be used for the same purposes and accrues at least as fast.
When you take paid sick leave, your employer must pay you at your normal hourly wage or the state minimum wage, whichever is higher. If your pay varies by the type of work you do, your “normal hourly wage” is the average hourly rate from the pay period before the one in which you take leave.3Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57s – Employer Requirement to Provide Sick Leave to Employees
What You Can Use Sick Leave For
The permitted uses go well beyond being too sick to work.
Your Own Health
Any personal illness, injury, or health condition qualifies, including diagnosis, ongoing treatment, and preventive care such as physicals and screenings. Mental health wellness days are explicitly allowed, so you do not need a diagnosed condition to take time for your emotional well-being.4Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57t – Permitted Uses for Paid Sick Leave
A Family Member’s Health
The definition of “family member” is broad. It covers:
- A spouse or domestic partner under any state’s laws
- A child, including biological, adopted, foster, stepchild, legal ward, or a child you stand in place of a parent for
- A parent or parent-in-law, including biological, foster, adoptive, step, legal guardian, or someone who stood in place of a parent to you
- A sibling or grandchild by blood, marriage, adoption, or foster care
- A grandparent
- Anyone related by blood or close association whose relationship is equivalent to those above
That last category is deliberately flexible. It can reach an aunt who raised you, a long-term partner, or another person with a family-like bond.5Connecticut General Assembly. Connecticut’s Paid Sick Leave Law
Family Violence or Sexual Assault
If you or your child is a victim of family violence or sexual assault, you can use paid sick leave for medical or psychological treatment, services from a victim services organization, relocating, or participating in related legal proceedings.4Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57t – Permitted Uses for Paid Sick Leave
Public Health Closures and Exposures
You can use leave when a public official closes your workplace or a family member’s school or care facility because of a public health emergency. It also covers exposure to a communicable disease where you or a family member poses a risk to others, as determined by a health authority, healthcare provider, or employer.5Connecticut General Assembly. Connecticut’s Paid Sick Leave Law
No Doctor’s Note Required
Employers cannot require medical documentation when you use paid sick leave. The Connecticut Department of Labor has stated that no documentation is required under the paid sick leave law.6Connecticut Department of Labor. Paid Sick Leave Q&A A demand for a doctor’s note before you can use accrued time may itself violate the statute.
Protection From Retaliation
Your employer cannot retaliate against you for requesting or using paid sick leave or for filing a complaint about a violation. Retaliation includes firing, demotion, suspension, or any other negative action tied to your use of these rights.7Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57v – Retaliation, Discrimination Prohibited
Retaliation carries a $500 civil penalty per violation. Other violations, such as failing to provide accrued leave or not posting the required notice, carry a penalty of up to $100 per violation. The Labor Commissioner can also order reinstatement, back wages, payment for used sick leave, and restoration of any benefits lost because of the retaliation.7Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57v – Retaliation, Discrimination Prohibited
Employer Posting and Recordkeeping
Employers must display a notice informing employees of their paid sick leave rights. The Connecticut Department of Labor publishes a sample poster that satisfies this requirement.8Connecticut Department of Labor. Notice – Paid Sick Leave Employers also have to keep records of each employee’s accrual and usage for at least three years.
How to File a Complaint
Any employee who believes the paid sick leave law has been violated can file a complaint with the Connecticut Department of Labor.7Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57v – Retaliation, Discrimination Prohibited Before you file, pull together your employer’s legal business name and worksite address, the specific dates you requested leave and what happened, and pay stubs showing your hours worked and any accrued sick time.
The DOL has two forms. Use the Statement of Claim for Wages if you were not paid for sick leave you used. Use the Workplace Standards Complaint Form for non-wage issues like retaliation or being denied leave. Both are available through the DOL’s Wage and Workplace Standards Division, and completed forms go to the Connecticut Department of Labor at 200 Folly Brook Blvd, Wethersfield, CT 06109.9Connecticut Department of Labor. Wage and Workplace Standards Complaint Forms Instructions
After you file, the Labor Commissioner may hold a hearing where both sides present evidence. If the Commissioner finds a violation, the employer faces the civil penalties above, and you may be awarded back pay, reinstatement, and restoration of benefits.7Justia. Connecticut Code 31-57v – Retaliation, Discrimination Prohibited