While July 1, 2015 is the primary date making most headlines for the new sick leave requirement in California, and is when in fact employees begin to accrue and will be eligible to take paid sick leave, there are many other deadlines employers should keep in mind:

1.      January 1, 2015:

Required poster “Healthy Workplaces/Healthy Families Act of 2014 – Paid Sick Leave” must be displayed.

Employers must start using revised Notice to Employee for all new non-exempt employees hired.

If an employer takes any adverse employment action against an employee within 30 days of an employee: (1) filing a complaint with the Labor Commissioner or in court alleging violations of the law; (2) cooperating with an investigation or prosecution of an alleged violation of the law; or (3) opposing a policy, practice, or act that is prohibited under the law.  Even though the accrual of the paid sick leave does not begin until July 1, 2015, this protection of employees and the creation of a rebuttable presumption is effective January 1, 2015.

2.      April 2, 2015:

The 90 day period for calculating employees with fluctuating wages begins.  If an employee’s pay fluctuates (e.g., if they are paid commissions or on a piece rate basis) the employer must divide the employee’s total compensation for the previous 90 days by the number of hours worked to determine the hourly rate that must be paid for the employee on sick leave.  Therefore, since employees begin accruing paid sick leave as of July 1, 2015, employers should be able to track the amount of pay and hours worked 90 days prior to July 1, 2015 and on a rolling basis going forward.

3.      July 1, 2015:

Employees have the right to accrue and take sick leave as set forth under the law.

4.      First pay period after July 1, 2015:

Employers must provide employees with a written notice that sets forth the amount of paid sick leave available on the employee’s wage statement or in a separate document that is provided to the employee on the employee’s pay date with the employee’s payment of wages.  The employer must continue to report this information to the employees each pay period going forward.

5.      Written notice to employees of new or changed paid sick leave policy – Seven days after implementation of policy or by July 8:

The revised Notice to Employee form (available to employers for download at DLSE’s website) must be used for non-exempt employees hired after January 1, 2015.  For employees hired prior to January 1, 2015, the employer is required to provide a revised Notice to Employee or otherwise inform each employee of the information regarding paid sick leave within 7 days of the change, using any of the alternative methods specified in Labor Code section 2810.5(b).