I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4575 

To provide for paid sick leave to ensure that Americans can address their 

own health needs and the health needs of their families. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 15, 2004 

Ms. DELAURO (for herself, Ms. BALDWIN, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. WAXMAN, Ms. SOLIS, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. 

SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. OWENS, Ms. NORTON, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. 

RANGEL, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. 

GRIJALVA, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. WYNN, Mr. 

OBERSTAR, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. BACA, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Ms. 

KILPATRICK, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Ms. WATERS, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Ms. LEE, Mr. EVANS, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. 

MCCOLLUM, Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York, Ms. MILLENDER-MCDONALD, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. HINCHEY, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. 

KILDEE, Mr. EMANUEL, Mr. SANDLIN, Ms. MCCARTHY of Missouri, Mr. 

BROWN of Ohio, Mr. STARK, Ms. WOOLSEY, and Mr. LARSON of Connecticut) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on Government Reform and House Administration, for a period to 

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for paid sick leave to ensure that Americans 

can address their own health needs and the health needs 

of their families. 
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Healthy Families Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

6 Congress makes the following findings: 

7 (1) Working Americans need to take time off 

8 for their own health care needs or to perform essen9 tial caretaking responsibilities for a wide range of 

10 family members, including, among others, their chil11 dren, spouse, parents, and parents-in-law, and other 

12 children and adults for whom they are caretakers. 

13 (2) Health care needs include preventive health 

14 care, diagnostic procedures, medical treatment, and 

15 recovery in response to short- and long-term ill16 nesses and injuries. 

17 (3) Providing employees time off to tend to 

18 their own health care needs ensures that they will be 

19 healthier in the long run. Preventive care helps avoid 

20 illnesses and injuries and routine medical care helps 

21 detect illnesses early and shorten the duration of ill22 nesses. 

23 (4) When parents are available to care for their 

24 children who become sick, the children’s recovery is 

25 faster, more serious illnesses are prevented, and the 
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1 children’s overall mental and physical health is im2 proved. Parents who cannot afford to miss work and 

3 must send children with a contagious illness to child 

4 care or school contribute to the high rate of infec5 tions in child care centers and schools. 

6 (5) Routine medical care results in savings by 

7 decreasing medical costs by detecting and treating 

8 illness and injury early, decreasing the need for 

9 emergency care. These savings benefit public and 

10 private payers of health insurance, including private 

11 businesses. 

12 (6) The provision of individual and family sick 

13 leave by large and small businesses, both here in the 

14 United States and elsewhere, demonstrates that pol15 icy solutions are both feasible and affordable in a 

16 competitive economy. Measures that ensure that em17 ployees are both in good health themselves and do 

18 not need to worry about unmet family health prob19 lems help businesses by promoting productivity and 

20 reducing employee turnover. 

21 (7) The absence of sick leave has forced Ameri22 cans to make untenable choices between needed in23 come and jobs on the one hand and caring for their 

24 own and their family’s health on the other. 
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1 (8) The majority of middle income Americans 

2 lack paid leave for self-care or to care for a family 

3 member. Low-income Americans are significantly 

4 worse off. Of the poorest families (the lowest quar5 tile), 76 percent lack regular sick leave. For families 

6 in the next 2 quartiles, 63 percent and 54 percent, 

7 respectively lack regular sick leave. Even in the 

8 highest income quartile, 40 percent of families lack 

regular sick leave. Less than 1 9 ⁄2 of workers who have 

10 paid sick leave can use it to care for ill children. 

11 (9) It is in the national interest to ensure that 

12 Americans from all demographic groups can care for 

13 their own health and the health of their families 

14 while prospering at work. 

15 (10) Due to the nature of the roles of men and 

16 women in society, the primary responsibility for fam17 ily caretaking often falls on women, and such re18 sponsibility affects the working lives of women more 

19 than it affects the working lives of men. 

20 (11) Although women are still primarily respon21 sible for family caretaking, an increasing number of 

22 men are taking on caretaking obligations, and men 

23 who request leave time for caretaking purposes are 

24 often penalized because of stereotypes that care25 taking is only ‘‘women’s work’’. 
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1 (12) Employers’ reliance on persistent stereo2 types about the ‘‘proper’’ roles of both men and 

3 women in the workplace and in the home hurts both 

4 men and women. 

5 (13) Employment standards that apply to only 

6 one gender have serious potential for encouraging 

7 employers to discriminate against employees and ap8 plicants for employment who are of that gender. 

9 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

10 The purposes of this Act are— 

11 (1) to ensure that all working Americans can 

12 address their own health needs and the health needs 

13 of their families by requiring employers to provide a 

14 minimum level of paid sick leave including leave for 

15 family care; 

16 (2) to diminish public and private health care 

17 costs by enabling workers to seek early and routine 

18 medical care for themselves and their family mem19 bers; 

20 (3) to accomplish the purposes described in 

21 paragraphs (1) and (2) in a manner that is feasible 

22 for employers; 

23 (4) to accomplish the purposes described in 

24 paragraphs (1) and (2) in a manner that, consistent 

25 with the portion of the 14th amendment to the Con-
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1 stitution relating to equal protection of the laws, 

2 minimizes the potential for employment discrimina3 tion on the basis of sex by ensuring generally that 

4 leave is available for eligible medical reasons on a 

5 gender-neutral basis; and 

6 (5) to promote the goal of equal employment 

7 opportunity for women and men, pursuant to such 

8 clause. 

9 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) CHILD.—The term ‘‘child’’ means a biologi12 cal, foster, or adopted child, a stepchild, a legal 

13 ward, or a child of a person standing in loco 

14 parentis, who is— 

15 (A) under 18 years of age; or 

16 (B) 18 years of age or older and incapable 

17 of self-care because of a mental or physical dis18 ability. 

19 (2) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ means 

20 an individual— 

21 (A) who is— 

22 (i)(I) an employee (including an appli23 cant), as defined in section 3(e) of the Fair 

24 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

25 203(e)), who is not covered under clause 
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1 (v), including such an employee of the Li2 brary of Congress, except that a reference 

3 in such section to an employer shall be 

4 considered to be a reference to an employer 

5 described in clauses (i)(I) and (ii) of para6 graph (3)(A); or 

7 (II) an employee (including an appli8 cant) of the General Accounting Office; 

9 (ii) a State employee (including an ap10 plicant) described in section 304(a) of the 

11 Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 

12 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16c(a)); 

13 (iii) a covered employee (including an 

14 applicant), as defined in section 101 of the 

15 Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 

16 (2 U.S.C. 1301); 

17 (iv) a covered employee (including an 

18 applicant), as defined in section 411(c) of 

19 title 3, United States Code; or 

20 (v) an employee or applicant to which 

21 section 717(a) of the Civil Rights Act of 

22 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16(a)) applies, 

23 other than an employee or applicant of the 

24 General Accounting Office or the Library 

25 of Congress; and 
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1 (B) who, on a year-round basis, regularly 

2 works at least 20 hours per week or, in the al3 ternative, at least 1,000 hours per year. 

4 (3) EMPLOYER.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘employer’’ 

6 means a person who is— 

7 (i)(I) an employer (as defined in sec8 tion 101(4) of the Family and Medical 

9 Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611(4))), 

10 who is not covered under clause (v), includ11 ing the General Accounting Office and the 

12 Library of Congress, except that a ref13 erence in such section to 50 or more em14 ployees shall be considered to be a ref15 erence to 15 or more employees; 

16 (II) an entity employing a State em17 ployee described in section 304(a) of the 

18 Government Employee Rights Act of 1991; 

19 (III) an employing office, as defined 

20 in section 101 of the Congressional Ac21 countability Act of 1995; 

22 (IV) an employing office, as defined in 

23 section 411(c) of title 3, United States 

24 Code; or 
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1 (V) an entity to which section 717(a) 

2 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applies, 

3 other than the General Accounting Office 

4 or the Library of Congress; and 

5 (ii) is engaged in commerce (including 

6 government), in the production of goods 

7 for commerce, or in an enterprise engaged 

8 in commerce (including government) or in 

9 the production of goods for commerce. 

10 (B) PREDECESSORS.—Any reference in 

11 this paragraph to an employer shall include a 

12 reference to any predecessor of such employer. 

13 (4) EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS.—The term ‘‘em14 ployment benefits’’ has the meaning given the term 

15 in section 101 of the Family and Medical Leave Act 

16 of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611). 

17 (5) HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL.—The term 

18 ‘‘health care professional’’ has the meaning given the 

19 term ‘‘health care provider’’ in section 101 of the 

20 Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 

21 2611). 

22 (6) PARENT.—The term ‘‘parent’’ means a bio23 logical, foster, or adoptive parent of an employee, a 

24 stepparent of an employee, or a legal guardian or 
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1 other person who stood in loco parentis to an em2 ployee when the employee was a child. 

3 (7) PRO RATA.—The term ‘‘pro rata’’, with re4 spect to benefits offered to part-time employees, 

5 means the proportion of each of the benefits offered 

6 to full-time employees that are offered to part-time 

7 employees that, for each benefit, is equal to the ratio 

8 of part-time hours worked to full-time hours worked. 

9 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of Labor. 

11 (9) SICK LEAVE.—The term ‘‘sick leave’’ means 

12 an increment of compensated leave provided by an 

13 employer to an employee as a benefit of employment 

14 for use by the employee during an absence from em15 ployment for any of the reasons described in para16 graphs (1) through (4) of section 5(d). 

17 (10) SPOUSE.—The term ‘‘spouse’’, with re18 spect to an employee, has the meaning given such 

19 term by the marriage laws of the State in which the 

20 employee resides. 

21 SEC. 5. PROVISION OF PAID SICK LEAVE. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—An employer shall provide for 

23 each employee employed by the employer not less than— 

24 (1) 7 days of sick leave with pay annually for 

25 employees working 30 or more hours per week; or 
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1 (2) a pro rata number of days of sick leave with 

2 pay annually for employees working less than— 

3 (A) 30 hours per week on a year-round 

4 basis; or 

5 (B) 1,500 hours throughout the year in6 volved. 

7 (b) ACCRUAL.—Sick leave provided for under this 

8 section shall accrue as determined appropriate by the em9 ployer, but not on less than a quarterly basis. Leave may 

10 be used as accrued or may be loaned by the employer to 

11 the employee in advance of accrual by such employee. 

12 (c) CALCULATION.— 

13 (1) LESS THAN A FULL WORKDAY.—Unless the 

14 employer and employee agree to designate otherwise, 

15 for periods of sick leave that are less than a normal 

16 workday, that leave shall be counted— 

17 (A) on an hourly basis; or 

18 (B) in the smallest increment that the em19 ployer’s payroll system uses to account for ab20 sences or use of leave. 

21 (2) VARIABLE SCHEDULE.—If the schedule of 

22 an employee varies from week to week, a weekly av23 erage of the hours worked over the 12-week period 

24 prior to the beginning of a sick leave period shall be 

25 used to calculate the employee’s normal workweek 
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1 for the purpose of determining the amount of sick 

2 leave to which the employee is entitled. 

3 (d) USES.—Sick leave accrued under this section may 

4 be used by an employee for any of the following: 

5 (1) An absence resulting from a physical or 

6 mental illness, injury, or medical condition of the 

7 employee. 

8 (2) An absence resulting from obtaining profes9 sional medical diagnosis or care, or preventive med10 ical care, for the employee subject to the require11 ment of subsection (e). 

12 (3) An absence for the purpose of caring for a 

13 child, a parent, a spouse, or any other individual re14 lated by blood or affinity whose close association 

15 with the employee is the equivalent of a family rela16 tionship, who has— 

17 (A) any of the conditions or needs for di18 agnosis or care described in paragraph (1) or 

19 (2); and 

20 (B) in the case of someone who is not a 

21 child, is otherwise in need of care. 

22 (e) SCHEDULING.—An employee shall make a reason23 able effort to schedule leave under paragraphs (2) and (3) 

24 of subsection (d) in a manner that does not unduly disrupt 

25 the operations of the employer. 
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1 (f) CERTIFICATION.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paid sick leave shall be pro3 vided upon the oral or written request of an em4 ployee. Such request shall— 

5 (A) include a reason for the absence in6 volved and the expected duration of the leave; 

7 (B) for foreseeable leave, be provided at 

8 least 7 days in advance of such leave; and 

9 (C) for unforeseeable leave for which ad10 vance notice cannot be given, be provided as 

11 soon as practicable after the employee is aware 

12 of the need to take such leave. 

13 (2) CERTIFICATION.— 

14 (A) PROVISION.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—An employer may 

16 require that a request for leave for more 

17 than 3 consecutive days be supported by a 

18 certification issued by the health care pro19 fessional of the eligible employee or of an 

20 individual described in subsection (d)(3), 

21 as appropriate. 

22 (ii) TIMELINESS.—The employee shall 

23 provide a copy of such certification to the 

24 employer in a timely manner, not later 

25 than 30 days after the first day of the 
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1 leave. The employer shall not delay the 

2 commencement of the leave on the basis 

3 that the employer has not yet received the 

4 certification. 

5 (B) SUFFICIENT CERTIFICATION.— 

6 (i) IN GENERAL.—A certification pro7 vided under subparagraph (A) shall be suf8 ficient if it states— 

9 (I) the date on which the leave 

10 will be needed; 

11 (II) the probable duration of the 

12 leave; 

13 (III) the appropriate medical 

14 facts within the knowledge of the 

15 health care professional regarding the 

16 condition involved, subject to clause 

17 (ii); and 

18 (IV)(aa) for purposes of leave 

19 under subsection (d)(1), a statement 

20 that leave from work is medically nec21 essary; 

22 (bb) for purposes of leave under 

23 subsection (d)(2), the dates on which 

24 testing for a medical diagnosis or 

25 treatment is expected to be given and 
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1 the duration of such treatment or 

2 testing; and 

3 (cc) for purposes of leave under 

4 subsection (d)(3), in the case of leave 

5 to care for someone who is not a 

6 child, a statement that the eligible 

7 employee is needed to care for an in8 dividual described in such subsection, 

9 and an estimate of the amount of 

10 time that such employee is needed to 

11 care for such individual. 

12 (ii) LIMITATION.—In issuing a certifi13 cation under subparagraph (A), a health 

14 care professional shall make reasonable ef15 forts to limit the medical facts described in 

16 clause (i)(III) that are disclosed in the cer17 tification to the minimum necessary to es18 tablish a need for the employee to utilize 

19 paid sick leave. 

20 (C) CONFIDENTIALITY AND NONDISCLO21 SURE.— 

22 (i) PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMA23 TION.—Nothing in this Act shall be con24 strued to require a health care professional 

25 to disclose information in violation of sec-
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1 tion 1177 of the Social Security Act (42 

2 U.S.C. 1320d–6) or the regulations pro3 mulgated pursuant to section 264(c) of the 

4 Health Insurance Portability and Account5 ability Act (42 U.S.C. 1320d–2 note). 

6 (ii) HEALTH INFORMATION

7 RECORDS.—If an employer possesses 

8 health information about an employee or 

9 an employee’s child, parent, spouse or other 

10 individual described in subsection (d)(3), 

11 such information shall— 

12 (I) be maintained on a separate 

13 form and in a separate file from other 

14 personnel information; 

15 (II) be treated as a confidential 

16 medical record; and 

17 (III) not be disclosed except to 

18 the affected employee or with the per19 mission of the affected employee. 

20 (g) CURRENT LEAVE POLICIES.— 

21 (1) EQUIVALENCY REQUIREMENT.—An em22 ployer with a leave policy providing paid leave op23 tions shall not be required to modify such policy, if 

24 such policy offers an employee the option, at the em25 ployee’s discretion, to take paid sick leave that is at 
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1 least equivalent to the sick leave described in para2 graphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a) and subsection 

3 (d). 

4 (2) NO ELIMINATION OR REDUCTION OF

5 LEAVE.—An employer may not eliminate or reduce 

6 leave in existence on the date of enactment of this 

7 Act, regardless of the type of such leave, in order to 

8 comply with the provisions of this Act. 

9 SEC. 6. POSTING REQUIREMENT. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each employer shall post and 

11 keep posted a notice, to be prepared or approved in ac12 cordance with procedures specified in regulations issued 

13 under section 13, setting forth excerpts from, or sum14 maries of, the pertinent provisions of this Act including— 

15 (1) information describing leave available to 

16 employees under this Act; 

17 (2) information pertaining to the filing of an 

18 action under this Act; and 

19 (3) the details of the notice requirement for 

20 foreseeable leave under section 5(f)(1)(B). 

21 (b) LOCATION.—The notice described under sub22 section (a) shall be posted— 

23 (1) in conspicuous places on the premises of the 

24 employer, where notices to employees (including ap25 plicants) are customarily posted; or 
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1 (2) in employee handbooks. 

2 (c) VIOLATION; PENALTY.—Any employer who will3 fully violates the posting requirements of this section shall 

4 be subject to a civil fine in an amount not to exceed $100 

5 for each separate offense. 

6 SEC. 7. PROHIBITED ACTS. 

7 (a) INTERFERENCE WITH RIGHTS.— 

8 (1) EXERCISE OF RIGHTS.—It shall be unlawful 

9 for any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny 

10 the exercise of, or the attempt to exercise, any right 

11 provided under this Act. 

12 (2) DISCRIMINATION.—It shall be unlawful for 

13 any employer to discharge or in any other manner 

14 discriminate or otherwise retaliate against any indi15 vidual for opposing any practice made unlawful by 

16 this Act. 

17 (b) INTERFERENCE WITH PROCEEDINGS OR INQUIR18 IES.—It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge or 

19 in any other manner discriminate against any individual 

20 because such individual— 

21 (1) has filed an action, or has instituted or 

22 caused to be instituted any proceeding, under or re23 lated to this Act; 
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1 (2) has given, or is about to give, any informa2 tion in connection with any inquiry or proceeding re3 lating to any right provided under this Act; or 

4 (3) has testified, or is about to testify, in any 

5 inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided 

6 under this Act. 

7 SEC. 8. INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY. 

8 (a) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY TITLE I OF FAMILY

9 AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 OR GOVERNMENT

10 EMPLOYEE RIGHTS ACT OF 1991.— 

11 (1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection: 

12 (A) the term ‘‘employee’’ means an em13 ployee described in clause (i) or (ii) of section 

14 4(2)(A); and 

15 (B) the term ‘‘employer’’ means an em16 ployer described in clauses (i)(I) and (ii), or 

17 clauses (i)(II) and (ii), of section 4(3)(A). 

18 (2) INVESTIGATIVE AUTHORITY.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—To ensure compliance 

20 with the provisions of this Act, or any regula21 tion or order issued under this Act, the Sec22 retary shall have, subject to subparagraph (C), 

23 the investigative authority provided under sec24 tion 11(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 
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1 1938 (29 U.S.C. 211(a)), with respect to em2 ployees and employers. 

3 (B) OBLIGATION TO KEEP AND PRESERVE

4 RECORDS.—An employer shall make, keep, and 

5 preserve records pertaining to compliance with 

6 this Act in accordance with section 11(c) of the 

7 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

8 211(c)) and in accordance with regulations 

9 issued by the Secretary. 

10 (C) REQUIRED SUBMISSIONS GENERALLY

11 LIMITED TO AN ANNUAL BASIS.—The Secretary 

12 shall not require, under the authority of this 

13 paragraph, an employer to submit to the Sec14 retary any books or records more than once 

15 during any 12-month period, unless the Sec16 retary has reasonable cause to believe there 

17 may exist a violation of this Act or any regula18 tion or order issued pursuant to this Act, or is 

19 investigating a charge pursuant to paragraph 

20 (4). 

21 (D) SUBPOENA AUTHORITY.—For the pur22 poses of any investigation provided for in this 

23 paragraph, the Secretary shall have the sub24 poena authority provided for under section 9 of 
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1 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

2 U.S.C. 209). 

3 (3) CIVIL ACTION BY EMPLOYEES.— 

4 (A) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An action to re5 cover the damages or equitable relief prescribed 

6 in subparagraph (B) may be maintained 

7 against any employer in any Federal or State 

8 court of competent jurisdiction by one or more 

9 employees or their representative for and on be10 half of— 

11 (i) the employees; or 

12 (ii) the employees and other employ13 ees similarly situated. 

14 (B) LIABILITY.—Any employer who vio15 lates section 7 (including a violation relating to 

16 rights provided under section 5) shall be liable 

17 to any employee affected— 

18 (i) for damages equal to— 

19 (I) the amount of— 

20 (aa) any wages, salary, em21 ployment benefits, or other com22 pensation denied or lost to such 

23 employee by reason of the viola24 tion; or 
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1 (bb) in a case in which 

2 wages, salary, employment bene3 fits, or other compensation have 

4 not been denied or lost to the 

5 employee, any actual monetary 

6 losses sustained by the employee 

7 as a direct result of the violation 

8 up to a sum equal to 7 days of 

9 wages or salary for the employee; 

10 (II) the interest on the amount 

11 described in subclause (I) calculated 

12 at the prevailing rate; and 

13 (III) an additional amount as liq14 uidated damages; and 

15 (ii) for such equitable relief as may be 

16 appropriate, including employment, rein17 statement, and promotion. 

18 (C) FEES AND COSTS.—The court in an 

19 action under this paragraph shall, in addition to 

20 any judgment awarded to the plaintiff, allow a 

21 reasonable attorney’s fee, reasonable expert wit22 ness fees, and other costs of the action to be 

23 paid by the defendant. 

24 (4) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.— 
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1 (A) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.—The Sec2 retary shall receive, investigate, and attempt to 

3 resolve complaints of violations of section 7 (in4 cluding a violation relating to rights provided 

5 under section 5) in the same manner that the 

6 Secretary receives, investigates, and attempts to 

7 resolve complaints of violations of sections 6 

8 and 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

9 (29 U.S.C. 206 and 207). 

10 (B) CIVIL ACTION.—The Secretary may 

11 bring an action in any court of competent juris12 diction to recover the damages described in 

13 paragraph (3)(B)(i). 

14 (C) SUMS RECOVERED.—Any sums recov15 ered by the Secretary pursuant to subparagraph 

16 (B) shall be held in a special deposit account 

17 and shall be paid, on order of the Secretary, di18 rectly to each employee affected. Any such sums 

19 not paid to an employee because of inability to 

20 do so within a period of 3 years shall be depos21 ited into the Treasury of the United States as 

22 miscellaneous receipts. 

23 (5) LIMITATION.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

25 subparagraph (B), an action may be brought 
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1 under paragraph (3), (4), or (6) not later than 

2 2 years after the date of the last event consti3 tuting the alleged violation for which the action 

4 is brought. 

5 (B) WILLFUL VIOLATION.—In the case of 

6 an action brought for a willful violation of sec7 tion 7 (including a willful violation relating to 

8 rights provided under section 5), such action 

9 may be brought within 3 years of the date of 

10 the last event constituting the alleged violation 

11 for which such action is brought. 

12 (C) COMMENCEMENT.—In determining 

13 when an action is commenced under paragraph 

14 (3), (4), or (6) for the purposes of this para15 graph, it shall be considered to be commenced 

16 on the date when the complaint is filed. 

17 (6) ACTION FOR INJUNCTION BY SECRETARY.— 

18 The district courts of the United States shall have 

19 jurisdiction, for cause shown, in an action brought 

20 by the Secretary— 

21 (A) to restrain violations of section 7 (in22 cluding a violation relating to rights provided 

23 under section 5), including the restraint of any 

24 withholding of payment of wages, salary, em25 ployment benefits, or other compensation, plus 
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1 interest, found by the court to be due to em2 ployees eligible under this Act; or 

3 (B) to award such other equitable relief as 

4 may be appropriate, including employment, re5 instatement, and promotion. 

6 (7) SOLICITOR OF LABOR.—The Solicitor of 

7 Labor may appear for and represent the Secretary 

8 on any litigation brought under paragraph (4) or 

9 (6). 

10 (8) GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE AND LI11 BRARY OF CONGRESS.—Notwithstanding any other 

12 provision of this subsection, in the case of the Gen13 eral Accounting Office and the Library of Congress, 

14 the authority of the Secretary of Labor under this 

15 subsection shall be exercised respectively by the 

16 Comptroller General of the United States and the 

17 Librarian of Congress. 

18 (b) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CONGRESSIONAL AC19 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995.—The powers, remedies, and 

20 procedures provided in the Congressional Accountability 

21 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) to the Board (as de22 fined in section 101 of that Act (2 U.S.C. 1301)), or any 

23 person, alleging a violation of section 202(a)(1) of that 

24 Act (42 U.S.C. 1312(a)(1)) shall be the powers, remedies, 

25 and procedures this Act provides to that Board, or any 
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1 person, alleging an unlawful employment practice in viola2 tion of this Act against an employee described in section 

3 4(2)(A)(iii). 

4 (c) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 5 OF TITLE

5 3, UNITED STATES CODE.—The powers, remedies, and 

6 procedures provided in chapter 5 of title 3, United States 

7 Code, to the President, the Merit Systems Protection 

8 Board, or any person, alleging a violation of section 

9 412(a)(1) of that title, shall be the powers, remedies, and 

10 procedures this Act provides to the President, that Board, 

11 or any person, respectively, alleging an unlawful employ12 ment practice in violation of this Act against an employee 

13 described in section 4(2)(A)(iv). 

14 (d) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY SECTION 717 of the 

15 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964.—The powers, remedies, and 

16 procedures provided in title 5, United States Code, to an 

17 employing agency, provided in chapter 12 of that title to 

18 the Merit Systems Protection Board, or provided in that 

19 title to any person, alleging a violation of chapter 63 of 

20 that title, shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 

21 this Act provides to that agency, that Board, or any per22 son, respectively, alleging an unlawful employment prac23 tice in violation of this Act against an employee described 

24 in section 4(2)(A)(v). 
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1 SEC. 9. GAO STUDY. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

3 United States shall conduct a study to determine the fol4 lowing: 

5 (1) The number of days employees used paid 

6 sick leave including— 

7 (A) the number of employees who used 

8 paid sick leave annually; and 

9 (B) the number of days employees used 

10 paid sick leave for their illnesses, or illnesses 

11 of— 

12 (i) a child; 

13 (ii) a spouse; 

14 (iii) a parent; or 

15 (iv) any other individual. 

16 (2) Whether employees used paid sick leave to 

17 care for illnesses or conditions caused by domestic 

18 violence against the employees or their family mem19 bers. 

20 (3) The cost to employers of implementing paid 

21 sick leave policies. 

22 (4) The benefits to employers of implementing 

23 the policies, including improvements in retention and 

24 absentee rates and productivity. 

25 (5) The benefits of paid sick leave to employees 

26 and their family members. 
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1 (6) Whether the provision of paid sick leave has 

2 affected the ability of employees to care for their 

3 family members. 

4 (7) Whether and in what way the provision of 

5 paid sick leave affected the ability of employees to 

6 provide for their health needs. 

7 (8) Whether the provision of paid sick leave af8 fected the ability of employees to sustain an ade9 quate income while meeting health needs of the em10 ployees and their family members. 

11 (9) Whether employers who administered paid 

12 sick leave policies prior to the date of enactment of 

13 this Act were affected by the provisions of this Act. 

14 (10) Whether other types of leave were affected 

15 by this Act including whether this Act affected— 

16 (A) paid vacation leave; 

17 (B) paid family or medical leave; or 

18 (C) personal leave. 

19 (11) Whether paid sick leave affected retention 

20 and turnover. 

21 (b) AGGREGATING DATA.—The data collected under 

22 paragraphs (1), (2), and (6) of subsection (a) shall be ag23 gregated by gender, race, disability, earnings level, age, 

24 marital status, and family type, including parental status. 

25 (c) REPORTS.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comp3 troller General of the United States shall prepare 

4 and submit a report to the appropriate committees 

5 of Congress concerning the results of the study con6 ducted pursuant to subsection (a) and the data ag7 gregated under subsection (b). 

8 (2) FOLLOWUP REPORT.—Not later that 5 

9 years after the date of enactment of this Act the 

10 Comptroller General of the United States shall pre11 pare and submit a followup report to the appropriate 

12 committees of Congress concerning the results of the 

13 study conducted pursuant to subsection (a) and the 

14 data aggregated under subsection (b). 

15 SEC. 10. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 

16 (a) FEDERAL AND STATE ANTIDISCRIMINATION

17 LAWS.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify 

18 or affect any Federal or State law prohibiting discrimina19 tion on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, 

20 sex, age, or disability. 

21 (b) STATE AND LOCAL LAWS.—Nothing in this Act 

22 shall be construed to supersede any provision of any State 

23 or local law that provides greater paid sick leave or other 

24 leave rights than the rights established under this Act. 
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1 SEC. 11. EFFECT ON EXISTING EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS. 

2 (a) MORE PROTECTIVE.—Nothing in this Act shall 

3 be construed to diminish the obligation of an employer to 

4 comply with any contract, collective bargaining agreement, 

5 or any employment benefit program or plan that provides 

6 greater paid sick leave rights to employees than the rights 

7 established under this Act. 

8 (b) LESS PROTECTIVE.—The rights established for 

9 employees under this Act shall not be diminished by any 

10 contract, collective bargaining agreement, or any employ11 ment benefit program or plan. 

12 SEC. 12. ENCOURAGEMENT OF MORE GENEROUS LEAVE 

13 POLICIES. 

14 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to discourage 

15 employers from adopting or retaining leave policies more 

16 generous than policies that comply with the requirements 

17 of this Act. 

18 SEC. 13. REGULATIONS. 

19 (a) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY TITLE I OF FAMILY

20 AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 OR GOVERNMENT

21 EMPLOYEE RIGHTS ACT OF 1991.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para23 graph (2), not later than 120 days after the date of 

24 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prescribe 

25 such regulations as are necessary to carry out this 
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1 Act with respect to employees described in clause (i) 

2 or (ii) of section 4(2)(A). 

3 (2) GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE; LIBRARY

4 OF CONGRESS.—The Comptroller General of the 

5 United States and the Librarian of Congress shall 

6 prescribe the regulations with respect to employees 

7 of the General Accounting Office and the Library of 

8 Congress, respectively. 

9 (b) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CONGRESSIONAL AC10 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Board 

13 of Directors of the Office of Compliance shall pre14 scribe (in accordance with section 304 of the Con15 gressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

16 1384)) such regulations as are necessary to carry 

17 out this Act with respect to employees described in 

18 section 4(2)(A)(iii). 

19 (2) AGENCY REGULATIONS.—The regulations 

20 issued under paragraph (1) shall be the same as 

21 substantive regulations promulgated by the Sec22 retary to carry out this Act except insofar as the 

23 Board may determine, for good cause shown and 

24 stated together with the regulations issued under 

25 paragraph (1), that a modification of such regula-
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1 tions would be more effective for the implementation 

2 of the rights and protections involved under this sec3 tion. 

4 (c) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 5 OF TITLE

5 3, UNITED STATES CODE.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 

7 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Presi8 dent (or the designee of the President) shall pre9 scribe such regulations as are necessary to carry out 

10 this Act with respect to employees described in sec11 tion 4(2)(A)(iv). 

12 (2) AGENCY REGULATIONS.—The regulations 

13 issued under paragraph (1) shall be the same as 

14 substantive regulations promulgated by the Sec15 retary to carry out this Act except insofar as the 

16 President (or designee) may determine, for good 

17 cause shown and stated together with the regula18 tions issued under paragraph (1), that a modifica19 tion of such regulations would be more effective for 

20 the implementation of the rights and protections in21 volved under this section. 

22 (d) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY SECTION 717 of the 

23 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director 
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1 of the Office of Personnel Management shall pre2 scribe such regulations as are necessary to carry out 

3 this Act with respect to employees described in sec4 tion 4(2)(A)(v). 

5 (2) AGENCY REGULATIONS.—The regulations 

6 issued under paragraph (1) shall be the same as 

7 substantive regulations promulgated by the Sec8 retary to carry out this Act except insofar as the Di9 rector may determine, for good cause shown and 

10 stated together with the regulations issued under 

11 paragraph (1), that a modification of such regula12 tions would be more effective for the implementation 

13 of the rights and protections involved under this sec14 tion. 

15 SEC. 14. EFFECTIVE DATES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—This Act shall take effect on the 

17 date that is 6 months after the date of enactment of this 

18 Act. 

19 (b) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS.—In the 

20 case of a collective bargaining agreement in effect on the 

21 effective date prescribed by subsection (a), this Act shall 

22 take effect on the earlier of— 

23 (1) the date of the termination of such agree24 ment; or 
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1 (2) the date that occurs 12 months after the 

2 date of enactment of this Act. 

Æ