Are employers required to give time off for school activities? - HR Insights

What are my obligations as an employer when it comes to time off for school activities? Are employers required to give time off for school activities?

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Question:

I have an employee who is a single parent. They have a parent-teacher conference they need to attend this week, but it’s during their shift. Normally, I let them use PTO, but I don’t have anyone to cover their shift this time. What are my obligations as an employer when it comes to time off for school activities? Are employers required to give time off for school activities?

Answer:

Federally, there is no obligation on employers to allow leave for school-related activities, but there are a few states that have requirements.

Long Answer: Looking at this from a broad perspective, time off to attend school-related activities is not something the law generally covers. From a federal perspective, there is no legal obligation for the employer to allow such leave. Of course, that means we have to zoom in and take a look at state law.

It may be surprising that we don’t find much here, either. Very few states offer such protections, and the way they are offered vary drastically between states.

For example, Maine requires Earned Paid Leave to employers with 11 or more employees; and has no qualifying reasons for leave – meaning employees can take it for any reason, including school-related reasons.

Meanwhile, California offers two different leaves: both a School Disciplinary Leave and a School and Childcare Activities Leave. The former requires an employer not to discharge or discriminate against an employee taking time off to appear at a school due to a request made for reasons specified under the California Education Code. The latter allows up to 40 hours of unpaid leave for specific activities relating to schooling or childcare.

Eligibility for these leaves also vary; in California, it is not just the parent who is eligible, rather a “parent, guardian, stepparent, foster parent, grandparent, or a person who stands in the place of a parent (in loco parentis) to a child”. However in other states, leave may be limited to parents or guardians of the child.

Most state leaves only provide for unpaid leave; paid school-related leaves are generally a result of it being a qualifying reason to take leave under a larger paid leave policy, or a result of using accrued time off, such as PTO.

While an employee’s options for such leaves are limited; it is possible that will change in the future. Once multiple states start enacting the same type of leave; it is usually only a matter of time before other states follow suit. Employers should keep an eye out for upcoming legislation regarding school-related activities.

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Are employers required to give time off for school activities?

Please note: This information is not legal advice and may not reflect specific state or local requirements.