LINCOLN, Neb. — Starting Wednesday, Oct. 1, most Nebraska workers gain the right to paid sick leave under the state’s new Healthy Families and Workplaces Act.
The law, approved by voters in November 2024, requires most private employers to provide paid sick time so employees can take time off when they are ill or need to care for a family member without losing pay.
How it works:
- Employees earn one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked.
- Annual limits depend on employer size: 40 hours for companies with 11–19 employees, 56 hours for companies with 20 or more.
- Paid sick time can be used for personal illness, preventive medical care, caring for a family member, or if a workplace or child’s school closes due to a public health emergency.
Unused sick time must carry over to the following year, although employers can frontload time or pay it out at year-end.
Employers must give employees written notice of the policy, display a poster at the workplace or share it electronically for remote workers, and cannot retaliate against employees who use their sick time.
Certain workers are exempt, including employees under 16, some seasonal or temporary agricultural workers, and independent contractors.
Officials say the law is expected to help thousands of Nebraska workers, reduce the spread of illness in workplaces and schools, and support public health by encouraging employees to stay home when sick.