The Last One Standing: The Sun Finally Sets on COVID Leave in New York

New York State enacted the first state law requiring all employers to provide leave for reasons related to COVID-19 in March 2020.

The extra paid sick days and “COVID-19  quarantine benefits,” however, are scheduled to end on July 31, 2025, when New York becomes the last U.S. jurisdiction to roll back COVID-era leave entitlements.

As one of the first states heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, New York pioneered a paid benefit to employees impacted by the virus. The budget bill (which was also responsible for enacting the statewide Paid Sick Leave law) passed in the early weeks of the 2020 lockdown, requiring New York employers to provide protected, paid sick leave to employees who are under a mandatory quarantine or isolation order due to COVID-19 and cannot work remotely, separate and in addition to other paid sick and safe leave benefits required under New York Law. The amount of mandated paid leave varied based on the size of the employer, requiring up to 14 days of paid leave from the largest employers.

When first enacted, New York’s COVID-19 paid leave law did not have an expiration date. On April 20, 2024, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the FY 2025 New York State Budget into law. The enacted budget bill included a provision sunsetting the COVID paid leave requirement on July 31, 2025–a full year later than originally proposed. During the pandemic, the New York State Department of Labor created mechanisms to ease an employee’s access to COVID-19 leave; however, over the past year, the NY DOL has gradually rescinded those tools, including self-attestation forms.

While several other jurisdictions enacted COVID-19 specific leave entitlements, or broader public health emergency leave laws, New York was the last jurisdiction to actively require COVID-related sick pay. Colorado’s public health emergency sick leave bank still exists, but it does not require employers to offer those benefits when, as now, there is no declared state of emergency.

Although July 31, 2025, will mark the end of statewide COVID-specific paid leave requirements, employees may still be entitled to other state or local paid sick leave benefits for COVID-related reasons, including for their own preventive care or treatment, or to care for a covered family member with COVID.

New York employers should review and revise their existing leave policies and leave protocols to reflect the end of the last COVID-specific leave law.