Below are a few payroll related questions that we recently received along with the response provided by our firm’s payroll manager Greta:
Q1: Is it by law that sick days have to be rolled over if not used?
MA SICK PAY – https://www.mass.gov/info-details/earned-sick-time
Basically how it works, employees earn 1 hour of sick time for every 30 hours worked. They can earn up to 40 hours in a year. If you have 11 or more employees, then you must pay the Sick Time. If you have under 11 employees, then you have to give the Sick Time off but it does not have to be paid (but you can pay if you want, must do the same for all employees). Employees can roll over up to 40 hours from year to year, if not used. However, they do not earn more time the next year. 40 is the max you have to give in a year, so if they roll over 40 then they don’t earn any more that year.
Employers may have their own sick leave policy or other paid time off policy that employees use as sick leave, as long as the policy provides the same benefits and protections that the law requires, or better. So if you offer PTO and they can accrue at least 40 hours in the year, then you don’t have to have Sick Time as well.
Q2: Do we have to pay employees for Jury duty up to 3 days?
MA JURY DUTY – https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-law-about-employment-leave-for-jury-duty
Payment of regularly employed jurors. ” Each regularly employed trial or grand juror shall be paid regular wages by his employer for the first three days, or part thereof, of juror service.”
If the Jury Duty is during the employees regularly scheduled work day, then you must pay them their regular pay for the hours they miss at work during the first three days of Jury Duty. You may ask the employee to provide proof of the time they were on Jury Duty.