U.S. Updates
California
The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) has released an updated Healthy Workplaces/Healthy Families Act (HWHFA) paid sick leave poster. You can find it here.
Maine
As a friendly reminder, Maine’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program will be going live on May 1, 2026. We covered a summary of the program in this newsletter and some additional updates here. Employees were able to submit an application as early as March 30, 2026, however, leave must occur on or after May 1, 2026 in order to be approved. Additionally, be sure to provide the Maine PFML poster in person or online to notify employees of their rights and responsibilities under the program.
Washington
The Employment Security Department (ESD) has responded to recent IRS guidance from last year with House Bill 2345, hoping to simplify tax-related burdens for both employers and employees alike in regard to contributions for the WA Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program.
HB2345 changes the way that employer and employee contributions are distributed, without affecting the total premium. In summary, beginning in 2027:
- Family leave premiums for employees will be calculated as an amount equal to the difference between:
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- The full amount of the premium required for family leave plus 45% of the full amount of the premium required for medical leave; and
- the full amount of the premium required for medical leave.
- Medical benefits will not be subject to federal withholdings (FICA), as they will be entirely funded by employee contributions.
As a reminder, employers with less than 50 employees in the state of Washington are not required to pay employer premiums for the PFML program, however employers may still elect to pay all or any portion of the employees’ share of the premium for family or medical leave benefits, or both. The total premium rate updates every October, and the ESD has stated that additional information about the new premium split will be provided later this year, so we will update you once this information is out.
Virginia
Virginia has become the latest state and first in the southern part of the country to pass legislation that establishes a Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program. The General Assembly passed SB 2 and HB 1207 respectively, and accepted recommended amendments made by Governor Spanberger. Here are the details:
- Contributions begin April 1, 2028 with benefits available as of December 1, 2028. Employers and employees will share the cost of premiums. Employers with more than 10 Virginia employees may deduct 50% of the contribution rate from employees. Employers with 10 or fewer Virginia employees are exempt from the employer contribution. At this time, the total contribution cost is yet to be determined.
- Employees will need to meet the minimum monetary eligibility criteria to be eligible.
- Employees may file claims for the following reasons:
- Parental leave
- Family care
- Medical leave
- Caring for covered service member
- Qualifying exigency leave, and
- Safe leave (domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking)
- The benefit duration is up to 12 weeks in the benefit year.
- A covered individual’s weekly benefit amount will be 80% of their average weekly wages during the base period (the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters immediately preceding the start of their benefit year).
- The minimum benefit is $100.
- The maximum benefit is capped at 100% of the state average weekly wage.
- Employees receiving PFML benefits will be entitled to restoration to the position they held when their leave began or to an equivalent position.
- Employers will have the option to establish a private plan.
The Virginia Employment Commission has released some FAQs that may be helpful.
Governor Spanberger has also signed SB 100, which prohibits retaliation against an employee who is absent from work due to serving as a voluntary emergency responder. Employers are not required to pay employees for work time missed while service as a voluntary emergency responder, however, employees may use paid sick leave or other accrued paid leave. The law is effective as of July 1, 2026.
Lastly, HB 5 has recommended amendments from the Governor that will need to be discussed by the House before potentially being approved. While the bill is pending, changes may come from it that affect paid sick leave requirements. The current paid sick leave law only covers home health care workers, and if passed, the updates will expand the law to cover all employees. These covered individuals will accrue a minimum of one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. The time can be carried over to the year following the year in which it was accrued, and employees cannot accrue or use more than 40 hours of paid sick leave in a year – unless the employer allows a higher limit. Earned paid sick time accrues at the commencement of employment, or an employer may front-load the minimum 40 hours of paid sick time at the beginning of the year.
If an employer’s paid leave policy offers sufficient paid leave that can be used for the same purposes and conditions as paid sick leave required by this law, then the employer is not required to provide additional paid sick leave. We’ll provide an update on what changes are adopted so you may prepare updates to your internal policies and handbooks.
Canada Updates
Employment Insurance (EI)
The Government of Canada has officially announced another six-month extension of waiving the 1-week waiting period for Employment Insurance (EI) claims established – this time the extension is through October 10, 2026. This end date was previously through April 11, 2026, and makes for the third extension of the EI pilot project. As a reminder, some claimants may still serve a waiting period if it is to their advantage due to top-up pay from their employer’s Supplemental Unemployment Benefit plan.
Additionally, we previously announced that Bill C-59 would be adding a new EI benefit for the purposes of adoption or placement of a child, which would be in addition to parental EI benefits. The effective date of this new benefit has still yet to be announced, so we will continue to monitor and let you know once a date has been set. In the meantime, you can find information about the benefit from our newsletter.
Alberta
As a reminder, Alberta recently amended their Employment Standards Code through a revision to the Employment Standards Regulation. The duration of the long-term illness and injury leave under the Act was extended from 16 weeks to 27 weeks, effective January 1, 2026.
This leave type continues to apply to all employees who have met the service requirement of being employed for at least 90 days. Also, the long-term illness and injury leave is per calendar year and leave does not carry forward into the next year. This means if an employee started their leave prior to January 1, 2026, the length of leave can be adjusted to reflect the new duration.
