Maryland HB 1021: Labor and Employment - Maryland Healthy Working Families Act - Seasonal Temporary Workers

Bill Text

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*hb1021*

HOUSE BILL 1021
K3 EMERGENCY BILL 0lr3230
HB 1300/19 – HRU CF SB 906
By: Delegates Hartman, Adams, Anderton, Arentz, Arikan, Ghrist, Jacobs, Mautz,
McComas, Miller, Otto, and Szeliga
Introduced and read first time: February 5, 2020
Assigned to: Economic Matters

A BILL ENTITLED

AN ACT concerning 1

Labor and Employment – Maryland Healthy Working Families Act – Seasonal 2
Temporary Workers 3

FOR the purpose of altering the period during which an employer is not required to allow 4
an employee to use earned sick and safe leave; altering the circumstances under 5
which an employer is required to reinstate certain unused sick and safe leave; 6
altering the circumstances under which an employer is authorized to require an 7
employee who uses earned sick and safe leave to provide certain verification; making 8
this Act an emergency measure; and generally relating to the Maryland Healthy 9
Working Families Act. 10

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 11
Article – Labor and Employment 12
Section 3–1304(c) and (h) and 3–1305(g) 13
Annotated Code of Maryland 14
(2016 Replacement Volume and 2019 Supplement) 15

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 16
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 17

Article – Labor and Employment 18

3–1304. 19

(c) An employer may not be required to allow an employee to: 20

(1) earn more than 40 hours of earned sick and safe leave in a year; 21

(2) use more than 64 hours of earned sick and safe leave in a year; 22

2 HOUSE BILL 1021

(3) accrue a total of more than 64 hours at any time; 1

(4) use earned sick and safe leave during the first [106] 120 calendar days 2
the employee works for the employer; or 3

(5) accrue earned sick and safe leave during a: 4

(i) 2–week pay period in which the employee worked fewer than 24 5
hours total; 6

(ii) 1–week pay period if the employee worked fewer than a combined 7
total of 24 hours in the current and the immediately preceding pay period; or 8

(iii) pay period in which: 9

1. the employee is paid twice a month regardless of the 10
number of weeks in a pay period; and 11

2. the employee worked fewer than 26 hours in the pay 12
period. 13

(h) If an employee is rehired by the employer within [37] 32 weeks after leaving 14
the employment of the employer, the employer shall reinstate any unused earned sick and 15
safe leave that the employee had when the employee left the employment of the employer 16
unless the employer voluntarily paid out the unused earned sick and safe leave on the 17
termination of employment. 18

3–1305. 19

(g) (1) An employer may require an employee who uses earned sick and safe 20
leave to provide verification that the leave was used appropriately under subsection (a) of 21
this section if[: 22

(i)] the leave was used for more than two consecutive scheduled 23
shifts[; or 24

(ii) 1. the employee used the leave during the period between the 25
first 107 and 120 calendar days, both inclusive, that the employee was employed by the 26
employer; and 27

2. the employee agreed to provide verification under terms 28
mutually agreed to by the employer and the employee at the time the employee was hired 29
by the employer]. 30

(2) If an employee fails or refuses to provide verification as required by an 31
employer under paragraph (1) of this subsection, the employer may deny a subsequent 32

HOUSE BILL 1021 3

request to take earned sick and safe leave for the same reason. 1

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act is an emergency 2
measure, is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health or safety, has 3
been passed by a yea and nay vote supported by three–fifths of all the members elected to 4
each of the two Houses of the General Assembly, and shall take effect from the date it is 5
enacted. 6