May 2022 |
State and Local PFL Updates |
Maryland and Delaware pass PFL bills |
Do you, or will you, have employees working, either in an office or remotely, in the state of Maryland or Delaware? If so, these two states are the 10th and 11th states to provide Paid Family Leave (PFL). The bills enable workers to take up to 12 weeks of partially paid leave for specified personal family circumstances. Maryland benefits are set to start in 2025, and Delaware in 2026. Not to worry - Sparrow will have you covered.
States currently offering PFL programs include California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Washington, and the District of Columbia. Oregon’s PFL program is set to start in 2023 and Colorado in 2024. |
New Hampshire proposes voluntary PFL |
The state of New Hampshire is considering a voluntary paid family leave insurance plan, which would require no income tax and would be available for employees working in New Hampshire. This would be the first state to adopt an alternative to a mandatory state program. |
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Product Updates |
A lot of great things are happening to enhance your experience. Along with bolstering our security protocols, the list below are new enhancements we’ve made over the past quarter. Please reach out to your Leave Specialist with any questions. |
Enhanced HRIS Integrations |
Sparrow has built an integration that enables automatic import of employee data (and keeps it up to date), saving you time having to enter this data manually. Setting this up is simple and begins with letting your Leave Specialist know.
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Are you a Workday user? Importing from it is now fully supported! |
Improved Payroll Reports |
We know the power of data, so we've revamped our automated payroll and HR reports. They are now easier to navigate, include more data, and are more customizable. |
Streamlined Experience for Repeat Leaves |
When employees take a second (or third) leave, the system will automatically find and match the previous record so all you have to do as the administrator is review and confirm the information. |
What’s next? SSO (single sign-on) and SAML for logins instead of passwords. |
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Leave in the News |
This company made a $195K mistake not realizing that New Jersey's Family Leave Act provided an additional 12 weeks of job protection for this employee following their FMLA leave. Under the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA), a leave granted due to the employee’s own serious health condition that is covered under the FMLA is NOT covered by the NJFLA, and therefore, the employee had the right to take a full 24 weeks. One takeaway here is to always remember that state programs are going to be more generous than the federal programs - because they have to. |
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Pilot, a Series B startup that manages bookkeeping for startups, is the latest company in the triumvirate’s repertoire. After founding three successful companies in 10 years, this founding team knows well how to navigate the complicated regulations and paperwork associated with running a company. Read more here. If you’d like to be featured let your Leave Specialist know! |
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Consider This… |
Are you able to bring your authentic self to work? Are your employees? Research shows most people do bring their authentic selves to the workplace but hold back at times. If inclusivity is a part of your people strategy, then it’s important to understand why you or your employees may be holding back. Check out this article on holding back authenticity for more insights on this topic, provided by HR Bartender. |
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