paid family and medical leave overview · programs some cities, such as san francisco, have...

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Paid Family and Medical Leave OverviewFebruary 2020

Navigating and complying with the various Paid Family and Medical Leave laws can be complicated — but it doesn’t have to be. This guide helps outline what you need to know for existing programs as well as for future programs to help be compliant. The information will help you understand how each of the states are implementing paid leave programs and what the future may look like.

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Paid Family and Medical Leave Overview

Table of ContentsPFML timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2019: A year in review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

PFML programs — The future is today . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

State plans with key dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

What does compliance look like? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

PFML coordination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

We are here to help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

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PFML timeline

Statutory disability laws first appeared back in the 1940s when men were coming back from war and were considered the primary income source while women were expected to stay at home to raise a family. Todays families have a very different dynamic where it is common to have both parents working and adult age children still living in the same home, contributing to the household expenses.

Given this change in dynamic, in recent years paid leaves have risen to the top of conversation within larger corporations and within our own governments to help mitigate a family’s financial risk if any income earner cannot work due to their own or a family member’s medical needs. The United States, Papua New Guinea, Suriname (the smallest country in South America) and a few island countries in the Pacific Ocean are the only countries in the United Nations that do not require employers to provide paid family leave for new parents.

2019: A year in review

Statutory Disability Laws Federal Statutory Paid Family

Statutory Paid Family & Medical Leaves

1940s RI, CA, NJ

1950s NY

1960s HI

1990s FMLA

2000s CA, NJ

2014 RI

2016 DC

2017 WA

2018 MA

2019 CT, OR

What you need to know:CT and OR passed new PFML Laws

WA, DC, MA are collecting PFML Assessments supporting their own governmental PFML programs

A Federal program was passed to offer paid parental leaves to many government workers

NY, NJ, and CA all expanded their existing programs

HI and CO commissioned studies to support adding PFL/PFML to their state benefit programs

In total, 31 states discussed proposed PFML bills

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PFML programs — The future is todayThe paid family leave landscape As of February 17, 2020

ME

NY

NH

MA

RICT

VT

TN

NC

SC

GAAL

FL

MS

PR

LA

TX

NJ

DE

HI

DC

PA

MD

VAWV

KY

IN

OH

AR

ND

SD

NE

KS MO

MN

WI

IL

MI

IA

OK

MT

ID

NV

WY

CO

AK

NM

AZ

UTCA

OR

WA

Federal Workers

For Producer or Broker/Dealer Use Only Not for Use with the General Public

Status

5 Approved and active

4 Approved – future start date

26 Proposed bill

8 Executive Orders

2 PFML Formal Study

1 DI only

6 No plan at this time

MetLife OfferingsSelf-Insured and Insured

Statutory Paid Family, Own Medical, and Disability leave laws are typically designed to provide basic benefits to ‘all’ workers in their jurisdiction; therefore, we see differences in each state’s plan designs.

States are providing guidance on minimum standards for PFML programs that help smaller employers compete for and retain talent by providing benefits many larger Employers already provide their Employees.

• Thirty-one states have proposed PFML bills in the last few years. Top states to watch in 2020 are:

– Colorado — Proposed bill will require employers with more than 20 workers to carry PFML coverage starting July 2022. Employers with more than 10 workers would be required to carry the coverage in 2025 and then every employer will be required to have coverage by 2027. Benefits include 12 weeks of leave with a maximum of $1000.

– Hawaii — PFL study published November 2019 that explains how Hawaii can add paid family leave to their existing disability statutory benefits.

– Pennsylvania — Proposed bill will offer between 12 – 20 months of PFML depending on leave reason.

– Vermont — 3 proposed bills offering up to 12 weeks of paid leave for family and the employees own medical leaves.

• A new federal program to allow 12 weeks of paid parental leave for many federal workers was passed and will be operational in October 2020. This program currently does not require businesses with government contracts to offer paid parental leave, but the implementation of this bill may spark further discussions to include parental leave programs as a requirement for government contracts.

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State plans with key dates

State Plan Name Key Dates MetLife’s Solution

MA • Paid Family and Medical Leave (MA PFML)

• Job Protection: Yes

• January 1, 2020 — State reporting starts premium payments due to the state

• January 1, 2021 — Benefits start

• Fully insured and self-insured coverage available

NJ • Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI)• Family Leave Insurance (FLI)• Job Protection: No

• January 1, 2020 — Increased employee contributions

• July 1, 2020 — Increased weekly benefits

• TDI — Fully insured and self-insured coverage available

• FLI — None

CA • Disability Insurance (DI)• Paid Family Leave (PFL)• Job Protection: No

• July 1, 2020 — expands PFL leave to 8 weeks

• January 1, 2021 — adding military exigency as an approved leave type under paid family leave

• Self-insured administration available for Voluntary Disability Insurance (VDI) and Voluntary Paid Family Leaves (VPFL)

NY • Disability Benefit Law (NY DBL)• Paid Family Leave (NY PFL)• Job Protection: DBL — No, PFL — Yes

• September 1 each year — Annual updates announced for community rates, employee contribution caps, phased benefits

• Fully insured and self-insured coverage available

WA • Paid Family & Medical Leave (WA PFML)

• Job Protection: follows FMLA

• January 1, 2020 — Benefits start • Self-insured administration

CT • CT Paid Family and Medical Leave (CT PFML)

• Job Protection: Yes

• January 1, 2021 — Employee premium assessment begins

• January 1, 2022 — Benefits payable

• TBD due to newness of law

OR • OR Paid Family and Medical Leave (OR PFML)

• Job Protected: Yes

• September 1, 2022 — Final regulations published

• January 1, 2022 — Premium payment start

• January 1, 2022 — Benefits payable

• TBD due to newness of law

DC • Universal Paid Leave (UPL)• Job Protection: No

• July 1, 2020 — Benefits start • Does not allow external plans

HI • Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI)• Job protection: No• Paid Family Leave — Act 109 Study

Sessions Law of Hawaii 2019

• November 2019 — Paid Family Leave study published

• TBD — State update for PFL coverage

RI • Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) • Temporary Caregiver Insurance (TCI)• Job Protection: No

• December — annual updates published

• State does not allow external plans

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What does compliance look like?Statutory Paid Family, Medical, or Disability leave and benefit laws are designed to provide basic benefits to all.

• Full time• Part time• Temporary workers• 1099 contractors

Eligibility Benefits Cost Admin

• Leave types• Duration• Paid benefits• Job protections

• State established pricing• Contribution limits• State vs Social Security

Wage Caps

• 2 — State Run only• 1 — Private Plan primary/

State Plan option• 6 — State Run/Private

Plan opt out

Compliance can be categorized into four primary areas: Eligibility, Funding, Benefits, and Administration.

work due to a need to care for a family member with a serious health condition, to bond with a child, military exigency, or potentially for safety when the employee or family is the victim of violence. Benefit durations can range from 2 weeks in DC to as much as 12 months in California. Many states will align benefits to be taken concurrently with the unpaid federal FMLA and offer around 12 weeks.

As for how much of a benefit will individual workers receive, like costs, is based on their wages earned in the state. Many states have their benefits weighted so that lower income earners will receive a higher percent of wage replacement than higher income earners. For example, Oregon’s new plan will give workers 100% wage replacement, up to a cap, if they make 65% or less of their state’s average weekly wage.

AdministrationHow are the PFML programs administered?

• Six states, including NJ, MA and CT can have insured or self insured plans. WA, CA, and OR can have self-insured plans.

• DC and RI programs are exclusively run through the jurisdiction/state and do not allow for private plan options.

• HI and NY wrote their statute so that private insurance would be the primary solution for coverage. In NY, approximately 95% of their statutory program is through private market offerings with only 5% of plans utilizing the State Insurance Fund.

EligibilityStarting with eligibility, statutory plans are different from employer sponsored plans. In most cases, they require every worker in the state to be covered. Which means that non-traditional workers such as part timers, people who are on temporary assignment, or 1099 contractors and former employees will be covered. It will be important for employers to identify the various types of workforce who are eligible to receive benefits under their statutory plans and be able to report them as required under the statutory law.

FundingSome state programs have state established pricing, such as New York which has a community rate for PFL, but market determined rates for its DBL program. Other states, like Connecticut and California, will both set the funding levels of their PFML programs to be 100% funded by the employee. In addition to the state programs some cities, such as San Francisco, have established their own PFML programs so that the employer will fund a top up benefit allowing workers to receive 100% of their normal pay when the leave is for child bonding.

Most states, like Washington, Massachusetts, and Oregon, have a split funding method where both employees and employers contribute to the plan where funding limits are established utilizing either the State’s average wage or the Social Security Wage Cap.

BenefitsBenefits for the own medical or disability leaves are based on the employee’s own health condition; while paid family leave primarily means the leave is not for the employee’s own health condition but instead allows the individual time away from

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What does compliance look like? (continued)Similar Employer Responsibilities

PFML coordination

With the growing number of absence related leaves today, there is a need to coordinate state run PFML programs with federal and/or employer sponsored programs and that responsibility will fall on the hands of the employer and the employee.

Did you know:

One baby could mean 16* benefits for new parents* In California, one baby could mean 21 benefits

Birth Mother48+ weeks benefits/leave

Father/Secondary Caregiver12+ weeks benefits/leave

Federal • FMLA — Medical Leave• FMLA — Child Bonding Leave• ADA — Pregnancy accommodations

• FMLA — Family Care Leave• FMLA — Child Bonding Leave

State/Local

• Sick Leave• Paid Medical Leave• Paid Family Leave• Accommodation laws

• Sick Leave — Family Care• Paid Family Leave

Employer • Paid Sick Leave/PTO• STD — Maternity• Paid Parental — Bonding

• PTO• Paid Parental — Bonding

When states allow for private insurance or self-insured programs, the insurer or administrator of these programs can harmonize all programs on behalf of the employer and employee, allowing for a seamless claimant experience.

Once Employers know they are mandated to provide the coverage and have identified their impacted employees, they have similar responsibilities regardless of the statutory state.

• Coordinate the payroll deductions or contributions required

• Submit quarterly reports to the state

• Inform Employees of their rights

• Ensure nondiscrimination and where applicable job protection, and

• Continue healthcare coverage for the workers while out on leave.

The complexity hits when they must do all of this for employees working in multiple states.


We are here to help

For your convenience, MetLife has organized a series of materials to assist in understanding PFML Statutory programs.

Metlife.com/PFML

PFML Landscape

Highlights for Statutory Compliance

Statutory Leave Benefit Guide

The information presented on this booklet is not legal advice and should not be relied upon or construed as legal advice. It is not permissible for MetLife or its employees or agents to give legal advice. The information on this brochure is for general informational purposes only and does not purport to be complete or to cover every situation. You must consult with your own legal advisors to determine how the specific state’s Paid Family and Medical/Disability Leave law(s) will affect you.

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company | 200 Park Avenue | New York, NY 10166 L0420002657[exp0621][All States] © 2020 MetLife Services and Solutions, LLC

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