Earned sick and safe time
WHAT IS EARNED SICK AND SAFE TIME?
Earned sick and safe me is paid leave employers must provide to employees in Minnesota
that can be used for certain reasons, including when an employee is sick, to care for a sick
family member or to seek assistance if an employee or their family member has experienced
domesc abuse.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
An employee is eligible for sick and safe me if they:
• work at least 80 hours in a year for an employer in Minnesota; and
• are not an independent contractor.
Part-me, seasonal and temporary employees are eligible for sick and safe me. Sick and safe me requirements
will not apply to building and construcon industry employees who are represented by a building and construcon
trades labor organizaon if a valid waiver of these requirements is provided in a collecve bargaining agreement.
HOW MUCH LEAVE CAN EMPLOYEES EARN?
An employee earns one hour of sick and safe me for
every 30 hours worked and can earn a maximum of 48
hours each year unless the employer agrees to a higher
amount.
AT WHAT RATE MUST THE LEAVE BE PAID?
Sick and safe me must be paid at the same base rate an
employee earns when they are working.
WHAT CAN THE LEAVE BE USED FOR?
Employees can use their sick and safe me for reasons
such as:
• the employee’s mental or physical illness,
treatment or prevenve care;
• a family member’s mental or physical illness,
treatment or prevenve care;
• absence due to domesc abuse, sexual assault or
stalking of the employee or a family member;
• closure of the employee’s workplace due to
weather or public emergency or closure of a family
member’s school or care facility due to weather or
public emergency; and
• when determined by a health authority or health
care professional that the employee or family
member is at risk of infecng others with a
communicable disease.
• making funeral arrangements, aending a funeral
service or memorial or addressing nancial or
legal maers that arise aer the death of a family
member.
WHICH FAMILY MEMBERS ARE INCLUDED?
Employees may use sick and safe me for their
following family members:
1. their child, including foster child, adult child,
legal ward, child for whom the employee is legal
guardian or child to whom the employee stands or
stood in loco parens (in place of a parent);
2. their spouse or registered domesc partner;
3. their sibling, stepsibling or foster sibling;
4. their biological, adopve or foster parent,
stepparent or a person who stood in loco parens
(in place of a parent) when the employee was a
minor child;
5. their grandchild, foster grandchild or step-
grandchild;
6. their grandparent or step-grandparent;
7. a child of a sibling of the employee;
8. a sibling of the parents of the employee;
9. a child-in-law or sibling-in-law;
10. any of the family members listed in 1 through
9 above of an employee’s spouse or registered
domesc partner;
11. any other individual related by blood or whose
close associaon with the employee is the
equivalent of a family relaonship; and
12. up to one individual annually designated by the
employee.
— more —
Earned sick and safe time
WHO DOESN'T QUALIFY FOR EARNED SICK AND SAFE TIME?
Sick and safe me does not apply to the following employees:
• Federal employees.
• Independent contractors.
• Volunteer and paid-on-call reghters.
• Volunteer ambulance aendants and ambulance service personnel.
• Elected ocials or a persons appointed to ll a vacancy to elected oce.
• An individual employed by a farmer, family farm, or family farm corporaon to do physical labor or manage the
farm, if they are hired to work for 28 days or less each year.
• Building and construcon industry employees who are represented by a building and construcon trades labor
organizaon if a valid waiver of these requirements is provided in a collecve bargaining agreement.
• Certain family caregivers who have waived their rights to sick and safe me.
WHAT ADDITIONAL SICK AND SAFE TIME RESPONSIBILITIES DO EMPLOYERS HAVE?
In addion to providing their employees with one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours worked, up to at least 48
hours each year, employers are required to:
• at the end of each pay period, provide to every employee the total number of earned sick and safe me hours
available for use, as well as the total number of earned sick and safe me hours used during the pay period;
• provide employees with a noce by Jan. 1, 2024 — or at the start of employment, whichever is later — in English
and in an employee’s primary language if that is not English, informing them about earned sick and safe me; and
• include a sick and safe me noce in the employee handbook, if the employer has an employee handbook.
The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry has prepared a uniform employee noce that employers can use
and has made it available in English and many addional languages spoken in Minnesota.
Safe me
To address domesc
abuse, sexual assault
or stalking
Sick me
For physical or
mental health
condions, illness
or injury
Labor Standards • 443 Lafayee Road N. • St. Paul, MN 55155
651-284-5075 • 800-342-5354 • dli.mn.gov • esst.dli@state.mn.us
Noce: This is a brief summary of Minnesota law. It is intended as a guide and is not to be considered a substute for Minnesota Statutes regarding earned sick and safe leave.
Version 062024