Join the Movement for Paid Sick Days and Paid Leave for All!
Below are the policy proposals we are advocating for this year.
1 |Paid Family Leave for Chosen Family: AB 518 (Wicks)
-Top Priority-
Update California's Paid Family Leave program to include chosen and extended family.
Status: This bill will unfortunately not move forward this year.
Almost all private sector and some public sector California workers pay into the State Disability Insurance Fund, which funds California’s Paid Family Leave (PFL) program. PFL provides partial income replacement for qualifying California workers who must take time away from work to care for a seriously ill family member or to bond with a new child.
However, California’s Paid Family Leave program reflects an outdated family model, only allowing workers to receive partial income replacement to care for a narrowly defined list of family members. This definition leaves out both chosen family and extended family members such as aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.
Outdated family definitions disproportionately affect California’s LGBTQ+ community, which is the largest of any state in the United States. Many LGBTQ+ adults, especially older adults, do not have accessible relationships with biological relatives. A survey conducted by AARP last year showed that of LGBTQ people 45 and older, 82 percent are concerned about having adequate family or social support as they age. California also has a higher percentage of extended families living in multigenerational households.
California made important progress in 2022 when the state legislature enacted AB 1041, which allows workers to use job-protected caregiving leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) and paid sick leave to care for a member of their chosen or extended family.
AB 518, authored by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, will continue important work in this area by ensuring that workers can access the Paid Family Leave benefits they already pay for to care for a member of their chosen or extended family.
Do you have an experience to share about needing to care for a family member who is not currently covered by Paid Family Leave? Share your experience here!
2| Early Application for Paid Family Leave and Disability Insurance Benefits:
SB 1090(Durazo)
-Top Priority-
Allow California Workers to Apply Early for Paid Family Leave and Disability Insurance Benefits
STATUS: Has passed the Legislature and is on its way to the Governor’s Desk!
California’s Paid Family Leave program provides partial wage replacement when a worker is unable to work because they are caring for a seriously ill or injured family member, bonding with a new child, or addressing a military exigency. California’s State Disability Insurance program provides partial wage replacement when a worker is unable to work due to an injury or illness that prevents them from working.
Together, these programs form a critical safety net for workers who need leave from work due to bond with a new child or due to their own or a family member’s serious health condition. Almost all private sector employees and some public sector employees pay into California’s Disability Insurance Fund, which funds the PFL and SDI benefit programs.
Right now, workers must wait until they are already in the midst of a significant family or health event before they can begin their application for PFL or SDI benefits. This requirement creates stress from not knowing how much they will receive in PFL or SDI benefits, or if they will qualify.
SB 1090, authored by Senator Durazo, would allow California workers to apply for Paid Family Leave and State Disability Insurance benefits up to 30 days before they are on leave. As a result, workers will be able to get confirmation of their eligibility and benefit amount before starting their leave, and receive benefits sooner.
Do you have an experience to share about having difficulty due to not being able to apply for Paid Family Leave or Disability Insurance benefits before you were already on unpaid leave? Share your experience here!
3| Improving Access to Paid Family Leave: AB 2123 (Papan)
Allow California workers to access Paid Family Leave without having to use accrued vacation time first
STATUS: Has passed the Legislature and is on its way to the Governor’s Desk!
California’s Paid Family Leave program provides partial wage replacement when a worker is unable to work because they are caring for a seriously ill or injured family member, bonding with a new child, or addressing a military exigency. Currently, employers are allowed to require employees to use up to two weeks of vacation time before receiving Paid Family Leave.
AB 2123, authored by Assemblymember Papan, will make a crucial and commonsense improvement to California’s Paid Family Leave by removing the provision that allows employers to require employees to use 2 weeks of accrued vacation before they can receive PFL benefits.
Do you have an experience to share about having to use accrued vacation before taking Paid Family Leave? Share your experience here!
4| A Strong Unemployment Insurance Program for a Resilient Economy: SB 1434(Durazo)
Modernize California’s Unemployment Insurance Benefits and Funding Structure to Create a Secure Social Safety Net
STATUS: SB 1434 will not be moving forward this year.
Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits are a vital social safety net for California workers who lose their jobs through no fault of their own. These benefits allow workers to continue to meet their basic needs like rent, food and medicine while searching for their next job, and support our entire economy during economic downturns.
Despite the program’s importance to workers and our economy, UI benefits are far too low compared to the cost of living in California. In fact, the maximum weekly benefit amount has not been raised since 2005. In contrast, California’s minimum wage has increased 12 times since 2005. Additionally, some California workers are excluded from receiving UI benefits by federal barriers on the state’s UI program.
California’s UI Fund has not met minimum solvency requirements since 1990 and had to borrow $20 billion dollars from the federal government in order to continue to pay out benefits during the pandemic. The loan is now owed along with interest, which is being paid with state money. In 2023, the state borrowed $306 million dollars from the Disability Insurance Fund to pay the UI loan interest payment. The UI Fund solvency issues are primarily caused by low employer payments to the fund, in fact the maximum amount of a workers’ wages on which an employer must pay taxes into the UI Fund is only $7000 and has not been raised since 1982.
SB 1434 introduced by Senator Durazo, would modernize California’s Unemployment Insurance benefits and funding structure to create a secure social safety net for our state’s future. It would increase weekly benefit amounts to workers, increase the UI Fund’s taxable wage base to ensure the fund is solvent, and protect the DI Fund from future borrowing.
Do you have an experience to share about having difficulty due to UI’s low weekly payments or about being excluded from receiving UI benefits? Share your experience here!
5| Strengthening Safe Leave: AB 2499(Schiavo)
Strengthen Safe Leave Protections For Survivors of Domestic Violence and Violent Crimes
STATUS: Has passed the Legislature and is on its way to the Governor’s Desk!
No one should have to fear losing their employment after surviving domestic violence or other violent crimes. Yet, 53% of survivors of domestic violence report losing a job because of the abuse and one in six victims of violent crime report losing their jobs or being demoted because they need to take time off following the victimization.
California state laws currently protect survivors from employment based discrimination, allow survivors to take leave or seek other accommodations at work.
AB 2499, authored by Assemblymember Schiavo, would strengthen current anti-discrimination, leave and accommodations for survivors of domestic violence and violent crimes. It would also allow California workers to use their paid sick and safe days and take unpaid leave from work to support a family member who is a survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or other violent crime in specific activities to help the survivor recover and secure their safety.
Do you have an experience to share about needing leave, discrimination or accommodations at work due to being a survivor or supporting a family member who is a survivor? Share your experience here!
6| Pregnancy Leave for Educators:
AB 2901(Aguiar-Curry)
Create Pregnancy Leave for California School Employees
STATUS: Moved to the inactive file.
Currently, California school employees cannot earn any paid pregnancy leave. When school employees get pregnant they must first exhaust their sick leave before accessing partial pay, the amount that is left over after their substitute has been paid. Having to exhaust paid sick leave can have long-lasting impacts, including reducing future retirement benefits since unused sick leave can be converted to service credits when school employees retire.
AB 2901, introduced by Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry, would grant school employees up to 14 weeks of leave with full pay, paid for by the employer, when an employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions.
Do you have an experience to share about not having pregnancy leave as a school employee? Share your experience here!
How does the Coalition choose their legislative priorities?
Legislation that reflects our mission, vision, and values statements are discussed and considered by all Coalition members at our Annual Statewide Meeting. Then, members take a vote on the legislation to choose our priorities for the year.
What does a “top priority” bill mean?
You might have noticed that three of the bills on this page are labeled “Top Priority.” This means that the Coalition will be leading campaigns on those bills. For the other bills, the Coalition will be playing a supporting role, meaning that other amazing Coalition members will be leading those campaigns, and we will be sharing out and taking action on the work created by those campaign leaders. We consider organizational capacity when making these decisions so that each legislative priority gets a fair and equal amount of resources and support.
