California requires 40 hours of paid sick leave per year — doubled in 2024.
Under SB 616 (effective January 1, 2024), California paid sick leave doubled from 24 hours to 40 hours/5 days per year. Workers accrue 1 hour per 30 hours worked (or employers can frontload 40 hours at start of year). Use cap: 40 hours/year. Accrual cap: 80 hours. Cannot be denied to workers who've worked 30+ days for the same employer.
Paid Sick Leave Accrual
Tracks paid sick leave accrual and balance per worker. 1 hour per 30 worked; 40 hours/year use cap; 80 hours accrual cap. Frontload option (40 hours at start of year) replaces accrual.
What the rule does on every shift, every payroll close.
The hero card configuration: Flag on accrual tagging, Avoid on balance surfacing. Here's what each does at runtime.
For each shift logged, the worker accrues 1 hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked. The accrual is tagged automatically — the balance updates after each shift, visible to the worker in the app.
In the worker app, the available sick leave balance is surfaced — letting the worker know their entitlement. This reduces sick-leave-related disputes and matches Labor Code § 246 disclosure requirements.
Deploy CA paid sick leave in your Teambridge.
Tell us about your workforce. We'll spin up California's sick leave accrual and tracking — alongside the other 20 California policies — in a sandbox tenant.
Accrue, frontload, or use a PTO bank — but cover at least 40 hours.
California gives employers flexibility in how to provide paid sick leave, as long as the result meets statutory minimums.
Three accrual options
Employers can choose: (1) accrue 1 hour per 30 worked from day 1 (used after day 90); (2) frontload 40 hours at start of each year (no accrual or carryover required); or (3) regular accrual that gets workers to 24 hours by day 120 and 40 hours by day 200.
Use cap and accrual cap
Annual use cap: 40 hours/5 days per year. Accrual cap: 80 hours/10 days. Workers can accrue beyond their use cap (up to 80) but cannot use more than 40 in a single year. Accrued unused leave carries over to the following year unless the employer frontloads.
Teambridge accrues, caps, surfaces, and pays — without manager intervention.
Sick leave is a high-touch benefit administratively but a low-touch one operationally. Teambridge handles the bookkeeping invisibly.
Balance updates after each shift.
For each shift, accrual is calculated (1 hour per 30 worked) and added to the worker's balance. The accrual happens automatically; managers don't approve or reject.
Balance shown on worker app.
Workers see their current sick leave balance in the app. They can request sick leave use directly, with the request tracked end-to-end.
Used hours deducted; cap enforced.
When sick leave is used, the hours deduct from the balance. The 40-hour annual use cap is enforced — additional unpaid sick days can be requested but won't draw on the balance.
SF, LA, San Diego ordinances applied.
Where a worker's primary work location triggers a local ordinance (SF, LA, San Diego), the more generous local rule applies. Teambridge tracks the location and applies the right ordinance automatically.
Still evaluating? Get a free California compliance audit.
Send us your existing California scheduling and pay configuration. Our compliance team returns a written audit within 5 business days — every California-specific exposure ranked by risk and back-pay liability.