Our research has disclosed that, other than in the state of New York, there are no state or federal laws mandating that employers pay employees for time off of work needed to get a vaccine shot, or to recover from any side-effects after getting a shot. In New York, most employers are required to provide employees with 4 hours of paid leave if they go for a vaccine shot, as per a bill passed Governor Cuomo in March 2021.
Massachusetts Legislature Rejects Governor Baker's Call for Mandatory Paid Leave
Massachusetts' legislature recently rejected Governor Baker’s paid lead proposal in favor of tax credit program. Otherwise, we have not seen much to suggest that states have an appetite to pass vaccine-related paid leave laws.
Federal Government Offers Tax Incentives to Employees Who Need Time Off for Coronavirus Vaccines
On April 21, 2021, President Biden announced that most employers that provide paid leave to employees who need time off of work to get vaccinated, or to recover from same, will be entitled to a tax credit.
Here is an excerpt from the Fact Sheet explaining the announcement:
A Tax Credit for Small- and Medium-sized Businesses to Fully Offset the Cost of Paid Leave for Employees to Get Vaccinated and Recover from Any After-Effects of Vaccination. Thanks to President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, a paid leave tax credit will offset the cost for businesses and nonprofits with fewer than 500 employees for up to 80 hours (i.e. 10 work days) up to $511 per day of paid sick leave offered between April 1 and September 30, 2021. This tax credit will allow these employers to provide paid leave for employees to get a COVID-19 vaccination and for any time their employees may need to recover from that vaccination at no cost to the employer. This tax credit will apply to nearly half of all private sector employees in America. Today, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released and posted a fact sheet to educate employers on how to claim the paid sick leave credit on their quarterly tax filings. For more details on how the paid leave tax credits from the American Rescue Plan will work for employers to enable employees to get vaccinated and recover from after-effects of vaccination, as well as for other purposes, please consult this snapshot from the Department of the Treasury.
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