New York Paid Family Leave (PFL) benefits

Effective next year in 2023, the PFL program will allow employees to take paid leave to care for a sibling. The definition of “siblings” is defined as a biological or adopted sibling, a half sibling or stepsibling.

Update (09/06/22): The DFS has announced the 2023 premium contribution rate for Paid Family Leave benefits. The contribution rate effective 2023 will decrease to 0.455% from 0.511%, while the maximum contribution per employee will subsequently decrease to $399.43 from $423.71. Earlier this year, the state average weekly wage was updated to $1,688.19 resulting in a taxable wage ceiling of $87,785.88 for 2023. This is an increase from 2022’s average weekly wage of $1,594.57, and taxable wage ceiling for PFL of $82,917.64. Lastly, the maximum weekly benefit amount for employees will increase to $1,131.08 from $1,068.36.

Update (12/09/22): An updated version of the Notice of Compliance form (PFL-120) has been released and must be posted in your workplace – see the below “Notice Requirements” for the details.

New York Disability Benefits Law (DBL)

Update (11/11/22): The state has updated the NY DBL (disability benefits) Statement of Rights (DB-271S). As a reminder, the state also recently updated the NY PFL (paid family leave benefits) Statement of Rights (DB-271S) form. You can find the updated version of each Statement of Rights form below (see “Notice Requirements”). The Statement of Rights forms should be provided to a New York employee who is requesting leave for qualifying DBL or PFL reason. If you are our client, the Larkin Company will provide this form to your employees when they request leave.

It is required that PFL information be included in your handbook. Therefore, we recommend updating your handbook for 2023 to include “sibling” as a family member under the PFL program.

The New York PFL and DBL statement of rights, as referenced above, should be provided when an NY employee requests a leave. These forms can be found here: DB-271S    PFL-271S (2023)

As noted, the new PFL-120 is available for 2023. This new version now includes language regarding PFL for COVID-19 quarantine leave. We recommend that you reach out to your insurance carrier as soon as practicable to obtain a copy of the updated form. Insurance carriers and self-insured employers can reach out through email to certificates@wcb.ny.gov for their copy.

Note: if you are a self-insured NY DBL and PFL employer, and we directly administrator your New York self-insured plan benefits, we will provide you with the new form soon (we have reached out to the New York to request a copy of the form). As a reminder, this form must be posted conspicuously in your place(s) of business.

Please also be sure to adjust your contributions in line with the updates, effective 2023.

Employer Responsibilities and Resources
New York Paid Family Leave Updates for 2023