ESST

EARNED SICK AND SAFE TIME (ESST)

What is ESST?

“Earned Sick and Safe Time” is paid leave employers must provide to employees in Minnesota that can be used for certain reasons, including when an employee is sick, to care for a sick family member or to seek assistance if an employee or their family member has experienced domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking.

How did we WIN this benefit?

Our union and members fought hard for years, lobbying with legislatures, to ensure that ALL workers in Minnesota can take time off work when they are sick without fear of losing their jobs or their paychecks.

Because of the work we did, in collaboration with other partners, the Minnesota legislature passed this bill, which Gov. Walz signed into law which went into effect on January 1, 2024.

What’s CHANGING in 2025?

For Members who have one PTO bank:

Beginning January 1, 2025 –employers will no longer be able to track earned safe and sick leave separate from accrued PTO hours. Instead, all accrued PTO will be covered under the law. If you use your accrued PTO time to recover from illness, care for a sick family member, or because of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking—that absence cannot count against your attendance under the employers’ attendance policy.

For employees who work less than a benefit eligible position, they will continue to accrue 1 hour of sick and safe time for each 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours per year.

In order to qualify for protection from occurrences under the law – you must report a sick and safe time covered reason for being absent (aka saying “I’m sick” instead of saying “I can’t come in”)

For Members who have separate Vacation and Sick banks:

Beginning January 1, 2025–all accrued sick hours will be covered under the law. If you use your accrued sick hours to recover from illness, care for a sick family member, or because of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking—that absence cannot count against your attendance under the employers’ attendance policy.

For employees who work less than a benefit eligible position, they will continue to accrue 1 hour of sick and safe time for each 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours per year.

Additional Information here: https://www.dli.mn.gov/sick-leave-changes

What can ESST be used for?

Employees can use their earned sick and safe time for reasons such as:

the employee’s mental or physical illness, treatment or preventive care;
a family member’s mental or physical illness, treatment or preventive care;
absence due to domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking of the employee or a family member;
to make funeral arrangements, attend a funeral service or memorial or address financial or legal matters that arise after the death of a family member;
closure of the employee’s workplace due to weather or public emergency or closure of a family member’s school or care facility due to weather or public emergency; and
when determined by a health authority or health care professional that the employee or a family member is at risk of infecting others with a communicable disease.

Which family members can an employee use ESST for?

their child, including foster child, adult child, legal ward, child for whom the employee is legal guardian or child to whom the employee stands or stood in loco parentis (in place of a parent);
their spouse or registered domestic partner;
their sibling, stepsibling or foster sibling;
their biological, adoptive or foster parent, stepparent or a person who stood in loco parentis (in place of a parent) when the employee was a minor child;
their grandchild, foster grandchild or step-grandchild;
their grandparent or step-grandparent;
a child of a sibling of the employee;
a sibling of the parents of the employee;
a child-in-law or sibling-in-law;
any of the family members (1 through 9 above) of an employee’s spouse or registered domestic partner;
any other individual related by blood or whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship; and
up to one individual annually designated by the employee.

Are employees required to provide documentation?

Employers may require documentation if an employee misses more than three consecutive scheduled workdays. The documentation provided does not have to be a note from a doctor. Employees can provide their own written statement and the statement doesn’t have to be in English, notarized, or in any particular format.

How can you report violations of your ESST rights?

If an employer fails to provide ESST or retaliates against you for exercising your rights under the ESST law, you can contact the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) to submit a complaint.

651-284-5075 or esst.dli@state.mn.us