Small Necessities Laws
Question:
What is the Small Necessities Leave Act and should I be concerned about it?
Answer:
The Small Necessities Leave Act (SNLA) gives employees the right to take leave for family obligations providing a limited number of hours annually, covering specific activities that are not included under the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) – such as for parents to attend school-related events and activities for their children. The hours of leave allowed under the SNLA is in addition to the 12 weeks leave allowed under the FMLA. Additionally, the hours do not need to be taken all at once, but can be taken intermittently, as long as it does not exceed the allowed maximum as mandated by the state.
Only a small number of states offer SNLA, these include:
- California – 40 hours
- DC – 24 hours
- Illinois – 8 hours
- Louisiana – 16 hours
- Massachusetts – 24 hours
- Minnesota – 16 hours
- North Carolina – 4 hours
- Rhode Island – 10 hours
- Vermont – 12 hours
- Nevada makes it unlawful to terminate an employee for using leave to attend a child’s school-related activities.
To be eligible for the SNLA an employee must have been employed with employer for at least 12 months, having actually worked at least 1,250 hours during the previous 12 months with that employer, and be employed at a company with 50 or more employees within 75 miles.
SNLA can be taken to:
- Participate in school activities directly related to the educational advancement of the employee’s child(ren), such as for parent-teacher conferences or interviewing for a new school.
- Accompany the child(ren) of the employee to routine medical or dental appointments, such as checkups or vaccinations.
- Accompany an elderly relative of the employee to routine medical or dental appointments or appointments for other professional services related to the elder’s care, such as interviewing at nursing homes or group homes.
The employee must give seven days’ notice of intent to take such a leave if the leave is foreseeable. If the need for the leave is not foreseeable, the employee must give notice as soon as practicable. Leave can be calendar or fiscal year.
The SNLA leave is generally unpaid leave but, similar to the FMLA, employees may use accrued paid time and have the leave paid or the employer may require that the employee use such accrued time.
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