New York requires paid sick leave under Labor Law Section 196-b and paid family leave under Workers' Compensation Law Article 9, both fully preempting local Buffalo paid-leave ordinances and applying uniformly statewide.
NY Labor Law §196-b requires employers with five or more employees to provide up to 40-56 hours of paid sick leave annually depending on size, accrued at one hour per 30 worked. Smaller employers must provide unpaid sick leave. Paid Family Leave under Workers' Compensation Law Article 9 (effective 2018) provides up to 12 weeks of partial wage replacement for bonding, family care, or military exigency, funded by employee payroll deductions. NY HERO Act (2021) requires airborne-disease exposure plans. NY also offers COVID-era statutory leave. Buffalo cannot enact additional paid-leave mandates given state preemption.
Failing to provide accrued sick leave, retaliating against employees who use leave, or refusing Paid Family Leave coverage results in NY Labor Department investigations and back-pay damages.
See how Buffalo's paid leave preemption rules stack up against other locations.
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