Sec. 31-57s. Employer requirement to provide sick leave to service workers. Use of leave. Employer compliance. Rate of pay during leave. (a) Each employer shall provide paid sick leave annually to each of such employer's service workers in the state. Such paid sick leave shall accrue (1) beginning January 1, 2012, or for a service worker hired after said date, beginning on the service worker's date of employment, (2) at a rate of one hour of paid sick leave for each forty hours worked by a service worker, and (3) in one-hour increments up to a maximum of forty hours per calendar year. Each service worker shall be entitled to carry over up to forty unused accrued hours of paid sick leave from the current calendar year to the following calendar year, but no service worker shall be entitled to use more than the maximum number of accrued hours, as described in subdivision (3) of this subsection, in any year.

(b) A service worker shall be entitled to the use of accrued paid sick leave upon the completion of the service worker's six-hundred-eightieth hour of employment from January 1, 2012, if the service worker was hired prior to January 1, 2012, or if hired after January 1, 2012, upon the completion of the service worker's six-hundred-eightieth hour of employment from the date of hire, unless the employer agrees to an earlier date. A service worker shall not be entitled to the use of accrued paid sick leave if such service worker did not work an average of ten or more hours a week for the employer in the most recent complete calendar quarter.

(c) An employer shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section if the employer offers any other paid leave, or combination of other paid leave that (1) may be used for the purposes of section 31-57t, and (2) is accrued in total at a rate equal to or greater than the rate described in subsections (a) and (b) of this section. For the purposes of this subsection, "other paid leave" may include, but not be limited to, paid vacation, personal days or paid time off.

(d) Each employer shall pay each service worker for paid sick leave at a pay rate equal to the greater of either (1) the normal hourly wage for that service worker, or (2) the minimum fair wage rate under section 31-58 in effect for the pay period during which the employee used paid sick leave. For any service worker whose hourly wage varies depending on the work performed by the service worker, the "normal hourly wage" shall mean the average hourly wage of the service worker in the pay period prior to the one in which the service worker used paid sick leave.

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section and sections 31-57t to 31-57w, inclusive, and upon the mutual consent of the service worker and employer, a service worker who chooses to work additional hours or shifts during the same or following pay period, in lieu of hours or shifts missed, shall not use accrued paid sick leave.

Sec. 31-57t. Permitted uses for sick leave. (a) An employer shall permit a service worker to use the paid sick leave accrued pursuant to section 31-57s:

     (1) For (A) a service worker's illness, injury or health condition, (B) the medical diagnosis, care or treatment of a service worker's mental illness or physical illness, injury or health condition, or (C) preventative medical care for a service worker;

     (2) For (A) a service worker's child's or spouse's illness, injury or health condition, (B) the medical diagnosis, care or treatment of a service worker's child's or spouse's mental or physical illness, injury or health condition, or (C) preventative medical care for a child or spouse of a service worker; and

     (3) Where a service worker is a victim of family violence or sexual assault (A) for medical care or psychological or other counseling for physical or psychological injury or disability, (B) to obtain services from a victim services organization, (C) to relocate due to such family violence or sexual assault, or (D) to participate in any civil or criminal proceedings related to or resulting from such family violence or sexual assault.

(b) If a service worker's need to use paid sick leave is foreseeable, an employer may require advance notice, not to exceed seven days prior to the date such leave is to begin, of the intention to use such leave. If a service worker's need for such leave is not foreseeable, an employer may require a service worker to give notice of such intention as soon as practicable. For paid sick leave of three or more consecutive days, an employer may require reasonable documentation that such leave is being taken for the purpose permitted under subsection (a) of this section. If such leave is permitted under subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (a) of this section, documentation signed by a health care provider who is treating the service worker or the service worker's child or spouse indicating the need for the number of days of such leave shall be considered reasonable documentation. If such leave is permitted under subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of this section, a court record or documentation signed by a service worker or volunteer working for a victim services organization, an attorney, a police officer or other counselor involved with the service worker shall be considered reasonable documentation.

(c) Nothing in sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, shall be deemed to require any employer to provide paid sick leave for a service worker's leave for any purpose other than those described in this section.

(d) Unless an employee policy or collective bargaining agreement provides for the payment of accrued fringe benefits upon termination, no service worker shall be entitled to payment of unused accrued sick leave under this section upon termination of employment.

(e) Nothing in sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, shall be construed to prohibit an employer from taking disciplinary action against a service worker who uses paid sick leave provided under sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, for purposes other than those described in this section.

Sec. 31-57u. Additional leave. Donation of unused leave. Breaks in service. (a) Nothing in sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, shall be construed to (1) prevent employers from providing more paid sick leave than is required under sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, (2) diminish any rights provided to any employee or service worker under a collective bargaining agreement, or (3) preempt or override the terms of any collective bargaining agreement effective prior to January 1, 2012.

(b) Nothing in sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, shall be construed to prohibit an employer (1) from establishing a policy whereby a service worker may donate unused accrued paid sick leave to another service worker, and (2) who provides more paid sick leave than is required under sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, for the purposes described in subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-57t from limiting the amount of such leave a service worker may use for other purposes.

(c) Any termination of a service worker's employment by an employer, whether voluntary or involuntary, shall be construed as a break in service. Should any service worker subsequently be rehired by the employer following a break in service, the service worker shall (1) begin to accrue sick leave in accordance with section 31-57s, and (2) shall not be entitled to any unused hours of paid sick leave that had been accrued prior to the service worker's break in service unless agreed to by the employer.

Sec. 31-57v. Retaliatory personnel action prohibited. Filing of complaint with Labor Commissioner. Hearing. Penalties. (a) No employer shall take retaliatory personnel action or discriminate against an employee because the employee (1) requests or uses paid sick leave either in accordance with sections 31-57s and 31-57t or in accordance with the employer's own paid sick leave policy, as the case may be, or (2) files a complaint with the Labor Commissioner alleging the employer's violation of sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive.

(b) The Labor Commissioner shall advise any employee who (1) is covered by a collective bargaining agreement that provides for paid sick days, and (2) files a complaint pursuant to subsection (a) of this section of his or her right to pursue a grievance with his or her collective bargaining agent.

(c) Any employee aggrieved by a violation of the provisions of sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive, may file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner. Upon receipt of any such complaint, said commissioner may hold a hearing. After the hearing, any employer who is found by the Labor Commissioner, by a preponderance of the evidence, to have violated the provisions of subsection (a) of this section shall be liable to the Labor Department for a civil penalty of five hundred dollars for each violation. Any employer who is found by the Labor Commissioner, by a preponderance of the evidence, to have violated the provisions of sections 31-57s to 31-57u, inclusive, or section 31-57w shall be liable to the Labor Department for a civil penalty of up to one hundred dollars for each violation. The Labor Commissioner may award the employee all appropriate relief, including the payment for used paid sick leave, rehiring or reinstatement to the employee's previous job, payment of back wages and reestablishment of employee benefits to which the employee otherwise would have been eligible if the employee had not been subject to such retaliatory personnel action or discriminated against. Any party aggrieved by the decision of the commissioner may appeal the decision to the Superior Court in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54.

(d) The Labor Commissioner shall administer this section within available appropriations.

Sec. 31-57w. Notice to service workers of sick leave requirements. Regulations. Each employer subject to the provisions of section 31-57s shall, at the time of hiring, provide notice to each service worker (1) of the entitlement to sick leave for service workers, the amount of sick leave provided to service workers and the terms under which sick leave may be used, (2) that retaliation by the employer against the service worker for requesting or using sick leave for which the service worker is eligible is prohibited, and (3) that the service worker has a right to file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner for any violation of this section and of sections 31-57s to 31-57v, inclusive. Employers may comply with the provisions of this section by displaying a poster in a conspicuous place, accessible to service workers, at the employer's place of business that contains the information required by this section in both English and Spanish. The Labor Commissioner may adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, to establish additional requirements concerning the means by which employers shall provide such notice. The Labor Commissioner shall administer this section within available appropriations.