Paid Family Leave
Paid Family Leave provides employees that live and work in California with additional benefits. The benefits you'll receive will be in the form of paid time off to care for certain family members.
All California employees pay a nominal payroll tax to fund this benefit.
Paid Family Leave is a State of California unemployment compensation disability insurance paid to you when you take time off work to care for a seriously ill family member or bond with a new child. You may receive up to eight (8) weeks of benefits that may be paid over a 12-month period.
State Disability Insurance (SDI) is also a State of California unemployment compensation disability insurance. Like Paid Family Leave, it is a form of disability insurance, but SDI is different because it pays you when you can't work because of your own illness or injury.
SDI and PPL are California state wage replacement programs paid to employees that live and work in California. Out of state employees that do no pay California state taxes are not eligible for this program.
For more information on this program, or other types of leaves of absence, direct your questions to sdsurfbenefits@sdsu.edu, or you may contact one of SDSU Research Foundation's Leave Coordinators in HR at 619-594-4139.
- Eligibility
When can you file for Paid Family Leave benefits?
You may file a claim for Paid Family benefits for the following reasons:- To care for a seriously ill family member (child, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or registered domestic partner)
- To bond with a new child (either by birth, adoption, or foster care placement)
- To participate in a qualifying event resulting from a family member’s (spouse, registered domestic partner, parent, or child) military deployment to a foreign country
Does an employee have to work a minimum number of hours or days before becoming eligible for Paid Family Leave?
No. The Paid Family Leave law does not require a minimum number of hours worked or days employed to qualify for benefits.
May employees collect Paid Family Leave if they work part time?
Yes, provided they are otherwise eligible. Paid Family Leave is a wage loss protection program, which means that you may be entitled to a portion of the Paid Family Leave benefit if you are suffering a loss of wages and meet the other Paid Family Leave eligibility requirements.
- Benefits
Can you collect other benefits while also collecting Paid Family Leave?
You are not eligible for Paid Family Leave benefits if you are also eligible for or already receiving State Disability Insurance, Unemployment Compensation Insurance, or Workers' Compensation.
How much will I receive?
Weekly benefits (PDF Format, 22.42KB)* will range from $50 to $1620. To qualify for the minimum weekly amount ($50), you must have at least $75 in wages in the base period. To qualify for the maximum weekly benefit amount ($1620), you must earn at least $35,078 in a calendar quarter during the base period.
Will my Paid Family Leave benefits equal my full pay?
No. Your weekly benefit amount will be approximately 60-70 percent of your earnings up to the maximum weekly benefit amount. - Relationship of Paid Family Leave to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA)
Does Paid Family Leave expand employee rights under the FMLA or the CFRA?
No. Paid Family Leave does not change either of these two laws. Paid Family Leave simply provides a paid benefit.
What is the relationship between Paid Family Leave and employee leave laws?
The FMLA and CFRA are federal and state leave laws, respectively, that allow workers to take up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave from their jobs in a 12-month period to care for themselves or family members who are ill, or children who are unable to take care of themselves. Paid Family Leave does not change either law in any way and is completely separate from them. It merely provides up to eight (8) weeks of paid benefit to workers who suffer a wage loss when they take time off work to care for others. For more information about how FMLA and CFRA work for you at SDSU Research Foundation, review the leave of absence policies.
Will you be required to take leave under the federal FMLA and the CFRA at the same time you are receiving Paid Family Leave?
Yes, if eligible.
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