HBC recently advised its corporate clients about how to prepare for the full implementation of FAMLI leave in Colorado. Here’s what employers need to know:
Beginning January 1, 2024, employees will be entitled to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave for any of the following reasons:
To care for their own serious health condition.
To care for a family member's serious health condition.
To care for a new child, including adopted and fostered children during the first year after birth, adoption or placement of the child. (If the employee is seeking leave due to a pregnancy or childbirth-related complication, they are entitled to an additional four weeks of FAMLI leave.)
To make arrangements for a family member's military deployment.
To take "safe leave," meaning leave because the employee or employee's family member is the victim of domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault or abuse.
Note that the payments will come from the state during FAMLI leave, so employers are not responsible for direct payments. Benefits guaranteed by FAMLI are dependent on the employee’s earnings, with the employee receiving partial wage replacement, capped at $1,100 per week. The state has a premium and benefit estimator available here: https://co.accessgov.com/famli/Forms/Page/famli/famlicalculator/1 .
Premiums for FAMLI leave began to be collected in 2023, with employers submitting the premiums through an online system at the end of each quarter. As a general rule, FAMLI is funded by payroll taxes split 50/50 between employer and employee, with each paying 0.45 percent of their payroll to fund the program. Employers with fewer than 10 employees are not required to pay the employer share of the premiums.
Employers may opt for a private plan instead of the state’s FAMLI program, provided that the private plan is at least as generous as the public plan in terms of rights, protections, and benefits. Private plans may take the form of either self-insurance or a policy obtained through an insurance carrier, but they must be approved by the State prior to implementation. Approved plans will release employers from obligations to withhold premiums to fund the FAMLI program.
The FAMLI Toolkit for Employers is available here: https://famli.colorado.gov/employers/famli-toolkit-for-employers
For help in implementing FAMLI leave into handbooks and in navigating FAMLI’s interactions with other leave laws, including the FMLA and HFWA, contact HBC’s employment law team. https://www.hbcboulder.com/employment-law