Join Skoler Abbott attorneys John Gannon and Andrew Adams as they review this new important legislation in Connecticut and discuss best practices for compliance.

This summer, following a growing trend, Governor Ned Lamont signed Public Act No. 19-25, establishing a paid family and medical leave (PFML) insurance program in Connecticut. Paid family and medical leave laws entitle employees to a specified amount of paid time off from work to deal with a health issue or care for a new baby or family member with a medical condition. This differs substantially from the federal Family Medical Leave Act and many other state leave laws in that the time off is paid rather than unpaid, and funded by the new Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Insurance Trust Fund.

This summer Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont also signed what has been called the “Time’s Up” Act, which is effective as of October 1, 2019. The new law is aimed at strengthening employee protections against workplace harassment. The biggest change for employers is in the realm of employee training. Connecticut employers with three or more employees will now have to provide sexual harassment training to all existing employees—not just supervisory employees—by October 1, 2020.  Employees hired on or after October 1, 2019, need to be trained within six months of their start date. Employers with fewer than three employees will have to provide this training only to supervisors.