1. Purpose:
Alto recognizes that employees will need days off from work from time to time to address their medical needs.
2. Scope:
This policy applies to all non-exempt employees in CA.
3. Policy Statement:
All employees employed in the State of California for 30 or more days within a year from the commencement of employment are eligible to accrue paid sick leave as they work. Accrual begins on the first day of employment. On the 90th day of employment, the employee may begin to use their accrued sick leave, if any. Sick leave will accumulate at the rate of one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 72 accrued hours of sick leave.
Accrued paid sick leave carries over from year to year, but is subject to the cap of 3 days or 72 accrued hours. Once an employee reaches the accrual cap, they will not accrue further paid sick leave until some paid sick time is used.
Payment. Eligible non-exempt employees will receive payment for sick time at the same wage as the employee normally earns during regular work hours unless otherwise required by applicable law. Employees may use all or any percentage of their accrued sick leave for the purposes outlined below. To be eligible to receive paid sick leave, employees must provide reasonable advance notice of a foreseeable absence from work for which paid sick leave will be used. When an employee has an unforeseeable absence, the employee must provide notice as soon as practicable.
Usage. Sick leave may be used for the diagnosis, care, or treatment of an existing health condition of, or preventive care for, an employee or an employee’s family member or the employee’s designated person. For purposes of this policy, “family member” means any of the following: (1) a child which means a biological, adopted, or foster child, stepchild, legal ward, or a child to whom the employee stands in loco parentis. This definition of a child is applicable regardless of age or dependency status; (2) a biological, adoptive, or foster parent, stepparent, or legal guardian of an employee or the employee’s spouse or registered domestic partner, or a person who stood in loco parentis when the employee was a minor child; (3) a spouse; (4) a registered domestic partner; (5) grandparents; (6) grandchildren; and, (7) siblings.
As of January 1, 2023, employees may also use sick leave for a designated person, i.e.,a person identified by the employee at the time the employee requests paid sick days, but the Company limits the designation of such person to one (1) per calendar year.
Sick leave may also be used by an employee who is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking for related absences that are due to: seeking medical attention or treatment; psychological counseling; obtaining services from a domestic violence shelter, program, or rape crisis center; safety planning; or seeking judicial relief arising from domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
If an employee reports they are absent for a covered reason, the Company will assume the employee is requesting a deduction be applied against their paid sick leave balance consistent with this policy unless the employee advises otherwise.
Deductions. Employees are required to use a minimum of two (2) hours for each use of paid sick leave. For example, if an employee is absent for 90 minutes for covered reasons, the employee’s paid sick leave balance will be subject to a 2-hour deduction. Deductions from sick leave balances are based on the actual hours the employee is absent from work due to illness or injury. For example, if an employee is absent for covered reasons for 3.5 hours, then 3.5 hours will be deducted from the nonexempt employee’s sick leave balance. Employees will not receive compensation for absences for covered reasons once they use all of their accrued sick leave unless they choose to apply accrued, unused vacation, or other benefits to the absence.
Notice. Paid sick leave balances will be shown on employees’ itemized wage statements or on a separate written document provided to employees with their paychecks and wage statements. Please see the above provisions of this policy regarding when paid sick leave can be used and under what terms.
No Payout at Termination. The Company will not pay employees for unused sick leave upon termination of employment. If employees have any questions regarding this policy, they should contact Human Resources.