An Act To Prevent the Spread of HINI
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1665
Committee: Labor
Sponsors: MITCHELL, PINGREE, DAMON, GERZOFSKY, HOBBINS, JACKSON, BUTTERFIELD, CAMPBELL, WALSH INNES
Amends: 26 MRSA §637

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
The following document is provided by the 
LAW AND LEGISLATIVE DIGITAL LIBRARY 
at the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library 
http://legislature.maine.gov/lawlib 
Reproduced from scanned originals with text recognition applied 
(searchable text may contain some errors and/or omissions) 
( 
\. '-....-/ 
124th -MAINE LEGISLATURE 
Legislative Document ' 
No. 1665 
S.P.630 
In Senate, December 21,2009 
An Act To Prevent the Spread of HINI 
(EMERGENCY) 
Approved for introduction bya majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule, 
203. 
Reference to the Committee on Labor suggested and ordered pdnted. 
Presented by President MITCHELL of Kennebec. 
Cosponsored by Speaker PINGREE of North Haven and 
9tf)(J~ 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Senators: DAMON of Hancock, GERZOFSKY of Cumberland, HOBBINS of York, 
JACKSON of Aroostook, Representatives: BUTTERFIELD of Bangor, CAMPBELL of 
Newfield, WALSH INNES of Yarmouth, PlOTT! of Unity. 
' 
Printed on recycled paper 
Emergency preamble. Whereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and 
Whereas, the world health community continues to monitor the emergence of the 
4' 
pandemic influenza arising from the HINI virus; and 
Whereas, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the 
J;)epartment of Health and Human Services, Maine Center for Disease Control and 
Prevention have developed guidelines for employers to minimize the spread of the virus 
in the workplace; and 
, 
Whereas, in order to restrict spread of the virus in the workplace, it is impOltant to 
provide standards for paid sick leave for employees; and 
Whereas, these measures must take effect as soon as possible to address the 
. 12 
immed iate threat of th is pandem ic; and 
. . 
. 
Whereas, in the judgment of tl e Legislature, these facts create an emergency within' 
the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as 
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, 
therefore, 
Be it'enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 26 MRS A §636, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 455, §1, is repealed. 
Sec. 2. 26 MRSA §637 is enacted to read: 
§637. Paid sick leave 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings. 
. 
A. "Employee" means a person who may be permitted, required or directed by an 
employer in consideration of direct or indirect gain or profit to engage in any 
employment but does not include an independent contractor. 
B. '.'Employer" means a large business employer or a small business employer. 
C. "Family member" means: 
(1) A biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild or ward of the employee or of 
the employee's spouse or domestic partner; 
(2) 
A biological, foster or adoptive parent, stepparent or guardian of an 
employee or of the employee's spouse or a person who served in the place of a 
parent to the employee when the employee was a,minor; 
(3) A spouse; 
(4) A grandparent or spouse of a grandparent; 
. (5) A grandchild; 
) 
) 
) 
" 
Ii 
If 
,1 
, 
(~ 
,) 
\~) 
II 
IS 
.28 
(6) A biological; foster or adoptive sibling or spouse of a biological, foster or 
adoptive sibling; and 
(7) A domestic partner as defined in section 843, subsection 7. 
D. "Large business employer" means a public or private employer who employs 25 . 
. or more employees during the calendar year. For businesses in which the number of 
persons who are employed by the employer fluctuates above and below 25 during a 
year, the number of employees for the current calendar year is the average number of 
persons who were employed per week when the business was in operation during the 
preceding calendar year. 
E. 
"Paid' sick leave" means compensated leave provided by an employer to an 
employee as a benefit of the employment for use by the employee during an absence 
from the employment for the purposes described in subsection 3. "Paid sick leave" 
does not include paid disability benefits. 
. 
F. "Small business employer" means a public or private employer who employs 24 
or fewer employees during a calendar year. For businesses in which the number of . 
persons who are employed by the employer fluctuates above and below 24 during a 
year, the number of employees for the current calendar year is the average number of 
persons who were employed per week when the business was in operation during the 
preceding calendar year. 
2. Accrual of hours; amount; process. All employees have the right to paid sick 
leave as provided in this section. 
A. A large business employer shall. provide a minimum of one hour of paid sick 
leave for every 40 hours worked by an employee. The employer is not required to 
provide more than 52 hours paid sick leave in a calendar year. The employer shall 
allow an employee to carry over up to 52 hours paid sick leave to a subsequent 
calendar year, to the extent that they were not used by the employee. 
B. A small business employer shall provide a minimum of one hour of paid sick 
leave for every 80 hours worked by an employee. The employer is not required to 
provide more than 26 hours paid sick leave in a calendar year. The employer shall 
allow an employee to carry over up to 26 hours paid' sick leave to a subsequent 
calendar year, to the extent that they were not used by the employee. 
. 
C. An employer shall allow an employee to accrue paid sick leave beginning on the 
first day of employment. An employee rimy use accriJed paid sick leave beginning on 
the 90th day after the employee's first day of employment, unless the employer agrees 
to an earlier date. 
D. For a period of paid sick leave that is shorter than a normal work day, leave must 
be counted on an hourly basis or in the smallest increment that the employer's payroll 
system uses to account for absences or use of leave. 
.. Use of paid sick leave. An employee may use paid sick leave accrued under this 
section for any of the following: 
A. 
An absence resulting from a physical or mental illness, injury or medical 
condition of the employee; 
10' 
1'7 
B .. An absence resulting from obtaining professional medical diagnosis or care, or 
preventive medical care, for the employee. An employee must make a reasonable 
effort to schedule leave in a manner that does not unduly disrupt the operations of the 
employer; 
C. An absence resulting from closure of the employee's place of business by order of 
a public official due to a health emergency declared under Title 22, section 802 or an 
employee's need to care for a child whose school or place of care has been closed by 
order·of a public official due to a health emergency; 
. 
D. An absence for the purpose of caring for a family member who has any of the 
conditions or needs for diagnosis or care described in paragraph A or B; and 
E. An . absence for the purpose of obtaining social or legal services pertaining to 
stalking, domestic violence or sexual abuse if the employee or the employee's family 
member is a victim of violence, assault, sexual assaults under Title 17-A, chapter 11, 
stalking or any act that would support an order for protection from abuse under Title 
19-A, chapter 101, including: 
(1) Preparing for and attending court proceedings; 
(2) Receiving medical treatment or assisting with medical treatment for a victim 
who is the employee's family member; or 
. 
(3) Obtaining necessary services to remedy a crisis caused by domestic violence, 
sexual assault or stalking. 
4. 
Equivalent compensation. 
An empJoyer providing an employee with 
compensated leave for reasons consistent with this section that is equal to or greater in 
amount than the paid sick leave required by this section is deemed to have satisfied all of 
the obligations imposed by this section. 
5. 
Relationship to collective bargaining. 
This section applies to employees 
covered by a collective bargaining agreement unless the agreement provides paid sick 
27' 
leave benefits that may be used for reasons consistent with and that are equal to or greater 
than those provided in this section. 
6. Prohibited· actions by employer. An employer may not discharge, demote,-
suspend, discipline or otherWise discriminate against an employee or threaten to take any 
of these actions· against an employee who requests paid sick leave required by this 
section, or otherwise exercises rights granted under this section, or who files a complaint 
or testifies or assists in an action brought against the employer for a violation of this 
section. This section does not prohibit an employer from taking empl0yment action 
against an employee for taking leave that is not required by this sectioHi Oli 0ther 
applicable Jaw. 
7. Enforcement; rules. The Department of Labor shall adopt rules. to> lrnpTement 
and enforce the provisions of this section including carry-over provisions for earned! pa-icl; 
sick leave from year to year and to provide for reinstatement, back payor otheE equ:i~aIDl'e; 
remedies for violations of this section. The rules may also set forth procedures for the: 
receipt, investigation and prosecution of complaints brought under this section. Rules 
) 
) 
) 
,. 
~J 
adopted .pursuant to. this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, 
chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this 
legislation takes effect when approved. 
SUMMARY 
This bill requires an employer to give a maximum of 52 accrued hours of paid sick 
leave per year to any employee who is employed by a large business employer and a 
maximum of 26 accrued paid sick leave hours per year to any employee who is employed 
by a small business employer. . Paid sick leave is accrued from the first day of 
employment and can be used on the 90th day and thereafter. Earned paid sick leave may 
be used by an employee during an absence from employment due to the illness of an 
employee or illness of an employee's family member, if the employee's place of business 
is closed due to a public health emergency, if an employee needs to care for a dependent 
whose school or place of care has been closed due to a public health emergency, for the 
purpose of an employee accessing necessary preventive health· care or an employee's 
family member accessing necessary preventive health care or due to the employee or the· 
employee's family member being a victim of stalking, domestic violence or sexual abuse.