Senator Hochadel Votes to Expand Paid Sick Leave

Senator Jan Hochadel, D-Meriden, voted Monday to expand Connecticut’s decade-old paid sick time law from covering only about 12% of the state workforce to covering nearly the entire state workforce – about 1.6 million people – by 2027.

The bill passed the Senate on a 23-12 vote and now heads to the governor for his signature into law.

“No one should be compelled to go to work sick. That’s common sense and I’m proud to cast a vote in favor of expanding our policy to ensure that all employees are covered,” Senator Hochadel said. “This bill’s passage is a victory for Connecticut workers, their families, and the countless employees who will now be spared unnecessary contamination.”

Connecticut’s current paid sick leave law dates back to 2011 and only requires businesses with 50 “service worker” employees or more – about one out of every 8 jobs in the state – to give up to 40 hours of paid sick leave annually.

House Bill 5005, “An Act Expanding Paid Sick Days in the State,” will increase Connecticut’s outdated paid sick leave law in several ways:

• It expands current state law by covering nearly all private-sector employees and employer, moving from 25 employees in 2025, to 11 employees in 2026, to those with at least one employee in 2027.

• It broadens the range of family members for whom an employee can use their paid sick leave to care for.

• It increases the rate at which employees can accumulate paid sick leave.

• It broadens the reasons why employees can use paid sick leave.

Several New England states already exceed Connecticut’s outdated paid sick leave law, including Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont – each of which requires paid sick time for all employees.