NYS Governor Cuomo signed into law S.2588-A/A.3354-B which states that effective immediately, New York State employers must provide employees with up to four hours of paid time off per COVID-19 vaccination.

NYS Paid Leave Requirement

1. All New York employees must receive a paid leave of absence for “a sufficient period of time” not to exceed four hours per vaccine injection. In other words, employees may be entitled to up to eight hours of paid time off if receiving a two-injection COVID-19 vaccine.
2. This leave must be paid at the employee’s regular rate of pay; and
3. Employers cannot require employees to use other available leave (such as sick leave or vacation time) before providing this leave.

What This Means to You

1. If an employee is asking for time off so that they can get vaccinated, you must pay them at regular rate for up to 4 hours per vaccine.
2. You should pay them their regular rate of pay and you should not use any of their accrued sick leave to pay for this.

Effective Date

This law is effective immediately and expires December 31, 2022.