How Does the OHFA Affect Current Leave Policies?
Importantly, the proposed Act provides that an employer is not required to modify its current leave policy if the current policy offers paid leave that is at least equivalent to the sick leave described in the OHFA. Thus, if an employer currently has a general, multi-purpose “paid time off” (PTO) policy – even if it is does not specifically state that such leave may be used for sick leave – the proposed Act’s “current leave policies” provision appears to indicate that the employer would not need to modify the policy, so long as the general PTO policy permits employees to use at least seven days of sick leave per year. However, the proposed Act also provides that an employer “may not eliminate or reduce leave in existence on the date of enactment of this Act, regardless of the type of such leave, in order to comply with the provisions of this Act.” Thus, following enactment of the Act, employers apparently will be prohibited from reducing or eliminating current leave in order to offset
