New York State Paid Sick Leave Law: Accrual, Use, and Protections

Under the New York State paid sick leave law, every private-sector employee in the state earns job-protected time off to handle illness, preventive care, and certain safety situations, starting from the first day on the job. Depending on your employer’s size, you get up to 40 or 56 hours a year, and most workers are paid for that time at their regular rate. A separate bank of 20 hours of paid prenatal personal leave took effect on January 1, 2025.¹

Who Is Covered

Every private-sector employee working in New York State is covered. That includes part-time, full-time, seasonal, and temporary workers, and employees of nonprofits and private schools. Federal, state, and local government workers are not covered by this law, though their own employment terms may provide leave separately.²³

There is no waiting period. You begin earning sick time from day one, no matter how few hours you work.

How Many Hours You Get

The amount depends on how many employees the business has statewide during the calendar year, counted from January 1 through December 31.¹

4 or fewer employees with net income of $1 million or less: up to 40 hours of unpaid sick leave per year.
4 or fewer employees with net income over $1 million: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per year.
5 to 99 employees: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per year.
100 or more employees: up to 56 hours of paid sick leave per year.¹

The net income figure for the smallest tier is based on the business’s prior-year tax filings. The employee count reflects the total headcount at any point in the calendar year, not an average or a single snapshot.

When you use paid sick leave, your employer must pay you at your regular hourly rate or the applicable minimum wage, whichever is higher.³

How You Earn Your Hours

Employers can choose one of two methods. Under the accrual method, you earn at least one hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked, starting your first day.¹

Under the front-loading method, the employer gives you the full annual allotment at the start of the calendar year, so the entire bank is available immediately. An employer that front-loads cannot claw back hours later if you end up working fewer hours than expected.¹

Carrying Over Hours and What Happens When You Leave

Unused sick leave carries over to the next calendar year. Your employer can still cap how many hours you actually use in any single year at 40 or 56 (depending on employer size), but the balance itself rolls forward. Your bank can grow larger than what you’re allowed to use in a given year.⁴

If your employer front-loads fewer than 40 hours at the start of the year, they must still allow carryover of up to 40 unused hours into the new year on top of what they front-load.⁴

One thing catches people off guard. Your employer is not required to pay out unused sick leave when you quit, retire, or are fired. The statute says so explicitly.¹ If the same employer rehires you within the same calendar year, though, your previously accrued and unused hours must be reinstated.

What You Can Use the Leave For

Covered reasons fall into two categories. Sick leave covers diagnosis, treatment, and care for your own or a family member’s mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition, along with preventive care such as checkups and screenings.¹ Safe leave covers time off related to domestic violence, a family offense, a sexual offense, stalking, or human trafficking affecting you or a family member.³

The definition of “family member” is broad. It reaches your child (biological, adopted, or foster child, legal ward, or a child you’re raising as a parent), spouse, domestic partner, parent (including step-parents and legal guardians), sibling, grandparent, and grandchild. It also includes the child or parent of your spouse or domestic partner.¹ So taking a grandparent to a medical appointment or caring for a domestic partner’s child is a protected use.

Paid Prenatal Personal Leave

Since January 1, 2025, every employer must also provide 20 hours of paid prenatal personal leave during any 52-week period. This leave is separate from and in addition to your regular sick leave bank.¹

It covers healthcare services received during pregnancy or related to pregnancy, including physical exams, medical procedures, monitoring, testing, and consultations with a healthcare provider. You can take it in hourly increments, and pay is at your regular rate or the applicable minimum wage, whichever is higher. As with regular sick leave, employers are not required to pay out unused prenatal leave when you leave the job.¹

Your Job Protections and Privacy

When you return from sick leave, your employer must return you to the same position at the same pay and under the same terms you had before you left.³ They cannot fire you, demote you, cut your hours, or take any other negative action because you requested or used leave.²

Two protections matter in day-to-day practice. Your employer cannot require you to disclose a specific medical diagnosis or confidential details about a health or safety issue as a condition of taking leave.¹ And they cannot force you to find a coworker to cover your shift.²

Checking Your Leave Balance

If you ask your employer for a summary of the sick leave you’ve accrued and used, for either the current year or any prior year, they must provide it within three business days. The request can be oral or written.¹ Useful if you suspect your hours are being shorted or you want to know where you stand before a scheduled appointment.

If Your Employer Denies Leave or Retaliates

If your employer refuses to provide sick leave or punishes you for using it, you can file a complaint with the New York State Department of Labor. An investigator contacts the employer, and the Department may hold a compliance conference to try to resolve the issue. If the employer doesn’t comply, the Commissioner of Labor can issue an Order to Comply.⁵

Under Labor Law Section 215, civil penalties for retaliation range from $1,000 to $10,000 per violation, and from $1,000 to $20,000 for employers with a prior violation within the last six years. The Commissioner can also order liquidated damages of up to $20,000 per affected employee, reinstatement, and payment of lost wages.⁶

You can also go straight to court. You have two years from the date of the violation to file a civil lawsuit, and courts can award liquidated damages up to $20,000, lost compensation, reinstatement, and reasonable attorney fees.⁶ Retaliation is also a Class B misdemeanor, so criminal charges are possible in serious cases.

If You Work in New York City

New York City has its own paid safe and sick time law that predates the state law and adds protections in some areas, including specific rules on when an employer can request medical documentation. Where both laws apply, the more generous provision governs. The NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection administers the city law separately from the state Department of Labor.

1
New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 196-B – Sick Leave Requirements
2
The State of New York. New York Paid Sick Leave
3
New York State. New York Paid Sick Leave
4
New York State. New York State Paid Sick Leave FAQ
5
New York State Department of Labor. The Labor Standards Complaint Process
6
New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 215 – Penalties and Civil Action; Prohibited Retaliation