NY First State to Implement Mandatory Paid Prenatal Leave

The state of New York has included paid prenatal leave as part of its $237 state budget for fiscal year 2025. Under the state’s paid prenatal leave policy, which is the first of its kind in the nation, pregnant employees will be entitled to up to 20 hours of paid leave to attend prenatal doctors’ appointments.

Gov. Kathy Hochul first proposed a paid prenatal leave policy in January, noting statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), indicating that infant mortality had increased by three percent between 2021 and 2022. Hochul initially called for 40 hours of paid prenatal leave, but the legislature settled on 20 hours. An employee’s paid prenatal leave time is separate from and in addition to an employee’s existing sick leave.

Paid prenatal leave is one of several laws and policies recently implemented to protect and accommodate pregnant and postpartum workers. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Community (EEOC) just issued final regulations implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which went into effect last year. The PWFA requires employers with fifteen or more employees to accommodate pregnant workers reasonably.

Likewise, the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act (“PUMP” Act) expands existing protections for nursing mothers to have time and privacy to pump breast milk while on the job.

Aside from the New York policy that will become effective in 2025, Washington, D.C., is the only jurisdiction providing workers with paid pregnancy-related care. In 2021 that jurisdiction offered two weeks of paid leave for pregnant employees to receive prenatal care.

HBL has experience in all areas of benefits and employment law, offering a comprehensive solution to all your business benefits and HR/employment needs. We help ensure you are in compliance with the complex requirements of ERISA and the IRS code, as well as those laws that impact you and your employees. Together, we reduce your exposure to potential legal or financial penalties. Learn more by calling 470-571-1007.

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HBL offers employers comprehensive legal guidance on benefits in mergers and acquisitions, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), executive compensation, health and welfare benefits, healthcare reform, and retirement plans. We counsel a wide spectrum of clients including small, mid-sized, and large companies, 401(k) investment advisors, health insurance brokers, accountants, attorneys, and HR consultants, just to name a few. HBL is passionate about advising clients, and we are dedicated to our mission: to provide comprehensive, personalized, and practical ERISA and benefits legal solutions that exceed client expectations.

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