VBJ November 22 Online

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL
12 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com
November 2022
Employees May Now Take 12 Weeks California Family Rights Act Leave
to Care for a Designated Person
By Donald W. Hitzeman, Esq.
On September 29, 2022, Governor
Gavin Newson signed AB 1041,
expanding an employee’s right to take
up to 12 weeks of protected unpaid
leave from work to care for a person
designated by the employee, starting
January 1, 2023.
The California Family Rights Act,
originally enacted in 1993, was amended
in 2020 to expand the definition of
employer to those employing five or
more employees, effective January
1, 2021.
The CFRA makes it an unlawful
employment practice for a California
employer with five or more employees
to refuse to grant a request from
an employee who meets specified
requirements to take up to a total of
12 workweeks of protected leave from
work in any 12-month period to care
for their own medical condition or that
of a family member.
During this leave period, an employee
could be required to use Paid
Family Leave benefits, sick leave for
their own condition, or accrued vacation
pay, while the employer is required
to continue to pay for the employer
portion of any group medical insurance
benefit.
As of January 1, 2023, this latest
legislation expands the class of people
for whom an employee may take CFRA
leave to care for to include a designated
person. Government Code section
12945.2 defines “designated person” to
mean: “any individual related by blood or
whose association with the employee is
the equivalent of a family relationship.”
The employee is permitted to identify
the designated person at the time
the employee requests the leave. Interestingly,
the changes to the law do not
define what is meant by “the equivalent
of a family relationship,” so there may
be some level of subjectivity and even
confusion created by this ambiguity until
either the legislature or the courts further
define this term.
The law allows an employer to limit
an employee to one designated person per
12-month period for CFRA family care
and medical leave. Preferably, this should
be done in writing before leaves under
the CFRA are requested. At the very
least, however, this limitation should be
put in writing to an employee requesting
this leave when the designated person
is identified by the employee when requesting
leave. Employers would do well
to amend their employee handbook to
include this limitation, or at least put out
a written policy to employees outlining
the limitation.
The author, Donald W. Hitzeman,
a shareholder with Reid & Hellyer, A
Professional Corporation, is an experienced
Business Law Litigator and
Transactional Attorney. He has over
38 years of legal experience, including
advising business owners and operators
on employment issues, as well as general
business litigation, transactional matters
and estate planning. He may be reached
at his Murrieta office at (951)695-8700
or dhitzeman@rhlaw.com.
“
Employers would do
well to amend their
employee handbook
to include this limitation,
or at least put
out a written policy to
employees outlining
the limitation.
Don Hitzeman