Be Part of the Ultimate Safety & Compliance Community
Trending news, knowledge-building content, and more – all personalized to you!
The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked. This type of benefit is generally a matter of agreement between an employer and an employee (or the employee’s representative). Employers, however, do need to comply with applicable state laws.
Maryland law doesn’t require private employers to pay employees on jury duty. Effective October 1, 2012, employers may not require an employee to work during a certain time period on a day in which the employee is expected to perform jury service or acts related to jury service, or on a day after the employee performs jury service or acts related to jury service. Employers are also prohibited from requiring employees who are summoned and appear for jury duty for four or more hours, including traveling time, to work a shift that begins on or after 5 P.M. on the day of the employee’s appearance for jury duty or before 3 A.M. on the day following the employee’s appearance for jury duty. (2012 Laws of Maryland, Chapter 159, Senate Bill 16)
Maryland law allows employees two hours off to vote. There is no deduction in pay if employee furnishes the employer proof of voting. This time off for voting doesn’t apply if there are two consecutive nonworking hours during the time the polls are open.
Under Maryland law, employees cannot be deprived of employment solely because of job time lost to attend a proceeding that the employee has a right to attend.
Employers may not deprive employees of their jobs because of job time lost by the employee as a result of the employees' response to a subpoena requiring them to appear as a witness in any civil or criminal proceeding, including discovery proceedings; or the employee's attendance at a proceeding that the employee has a right to attend. Employers in violation of this law may be fined up to $1,000.
Employers with 15 or more employees are to allow employees who are members of the Civil Air Patrol up to 15 days’ leave to respond to missions. Employees are eligible if they have been working for the employer for at least 90 days. Employees are to provide as much notice as possible regarding the beginning and end dates of leave. After arriving at an emergency location, employees must notify the employer with an estimate of the amount of time needed to complete the mission. Employees must also report any necessary changes in the time required.
Employers may require verification of the eligibility of the employee for the leave. If the employee fails to provide such verification, the employer may deny the leave. Employers may not require employees to exhaust all other available leave before using Civil Air Patrol leave.
Employees and employers may negotiate who is responsible for paying for benefits during leave. However, employees are entitled to benefits accrued prior to leave upon return from leave.
Employees taking state military leave may not concurrently use Civil Air Patrol Leave.
At the end of leave, employees are entitled to return to their position or an equivalent one, unless unable to do so because of circumstances unrelated to the leave.
Effective February 11, 2018, employers with 15 or more employees are to provide accrued paid sick/safety leave to employees. Employers with under 15 employees are to provide accrued unpaid sick/safety leave.
Employees are eligible if they work 12 or more hours per week. The provision does not, however, apply to employees:
Employees begin accruing leave February 11, 2018, or upon hire. They accrue one hour of leave for every 30 hours worked. They need not accrue leave during:
Employers are not required to allow an employee to
Employers may have a waiting period of 106 calendar days after hire, during which an employee may not use leave.
Employers may front load the leave at the beginning of the year rather than awarding leave as it accrues. If so, the employer need not allow an employee to carry over unused leave.
Employees may carry over unused leave at the end of the year into the next year, but employers may limit the carry over to 40 hours. Unused leave need not be paid out upon termination.
Employees may take leave for the following reasons:
Family members include the following:
If the need for leave is foreseeable, employees are to provide reasonable advance notice of not more than seven days before the leave begins. If the need for leave is not foreseeable, employees are to provide notice as soon as practicable. Employees are generally expected to comply with the company notice or procedural requirements for requesting other leave, assuming those requirements do not interfere with the employee’s ability to use earned sick and safe leave.
Employers may, however, deny a leave request under the following situations:
Employees may choose to make up the absence instead of using accrued leave. Otherwise, they may take leave in the smallest increment your payroll system uses to account for other absences. Employees may not be required to take leave in an increment exceeding four hours.
Employers may require employees to provide verification that the leave was used appropriately.
When wages are paid, employers are to provide a written statement of the amount of leave available for use by the employee. This may be done electronically. Employers are to retain records related to the leave for at least three years.
Employers are to post a notice regarding the law’s provisions.
The law includes special provisions for tipped employees in the restaurant industry.
Contacts
Jury duty
Voting
Attend proceeding
Statutes/Regulations
Jury duty
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/michie/
Voting
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/michie/
Attend proceeding
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/michie/
Civil Air Patrol
Civil Air Patrol Leave Act of 2010
Sick and safe leave
Maryland Code, Article - Labor and Employment, Title 3 Employment Standards and Commissions, Subtitle 13 Healthy Working Families Act, 3-1301 through 3-1311.
Contacts
None.
Statutes/Regulations
None.