State and federal caregiver pay programs and laws employers need to know

Whether or not your company has a written caregiver leave policy (we think you should), your employees may be covered by state or federal laws that entitle them to protected, and sometimes paid, time off to care for a loved one. While you’re likely familiar with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), there are also a number of state pay programs and laws regarding caregiver leaves. 

With teams more distributed than ever before, understanding the time off and pay available to caregivers is an important and complex part of compliance. When you manage caregiver leaves in Cocoon, all the state and federal programs are codified. Our technology automatically determines employee eligibility, saving People teams and employees time and compliance worries. 

Read on to learn more about the current state caregiver leave laws and programs including time and pay available to employees and which relationships are covered. 

Federal caregiver leave laws

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Parent, spouse, child

State caregiver leave laws

California Family Rights Act (CFRA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: CA Paid Family Leave – 8 weeks with a weekly cap of $1,540

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Colorado Family Care Act (CO FCA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Domestic partner

Connecticut Family & Medical Leave Act (CT FMLA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

District of Columbia Family and Medical Leave Act (DC FMLA)

Time offered: 16 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Hawaii Family Leave Law (HI FLL)

Time offered: 4 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, parent (in loco parentis*), sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Maine Family & Medical Leave Act (ME FMLA)

Time offered: 10 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, parent (in loco parentis*), sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

New Jersey Family Leave Act​ (NJ FMLA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: New Jersey Family Leave Insurance – 12 weeks with a weekly cap of $903

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Oregon Family Leave Act​ (OR FMLA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Rhode Island Parental and Family Medical Leave Act ​(RI PFML)

Time offered: 13 weeks

Pay offered: Rhode Island Temporary Caregiver Insurance Program – 5 weeks with a weekly cap of $1,007

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, child (in loco parentis*)

Vermont Parental and Family Leave Act​ (VT PFLA)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, child (in loco parentis*)

Wisconsin Family and Medical Leave (WI FMLA)

Time offered: 2 weeks

Pay offered: None

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (MA PFML)

Time offered: 16 weeks

Pay offered: 12 weeks with a weekly cap of $1,084.31

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

New York Paid Family Leave (NY PFL)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: PFL benefits will be 67% of the employee’s average weekly wage, which cannot exceed 67% of the NY state average weekly wage

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), parent-in-law, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave Law (WA PFML)

Time offered: 12 weeks

Pay offered: 12 weeks, with a weekly cap of $1,327

Relationships covered: Spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, parent (in loco parentis*), sibling, child (in loco parentis*), grandchild

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*In loco parentis refers to an adult acting in place of a parent.