Oregon Updates Family Leave Act

Update Applicable to:
All employers

What happened?
On June 8, 2021, Governor Brown signed House Bill 2474 into law.

What are the details?
HB 2474 amends the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) to update and expand the law’s eligibility and leave provisions which will take effect on January 1, 2022. The amendments give eligibility to take leave to employees reemployed after a separation or returning after a temporary work cessation within 180 days, expand eligibility and leave entitlements during public health emergencies, and remove gendered language.

Employees who are reemployed after a separation from employment or returning from work after a temporary cessation of scheduled work hours, within 180 days, are now eligible for leave in the following circumstances.

• Employees reemployed or returning within 180 days who were eligible for OFLA leave at the time of separation from employment or the beginning of their temporary cessation of work will be eligible to take OFLA leave immediately upon reemployment or return.
• Employees reemployed or returning within 180 days who were not yet eligible for OFLA leave at the time of separation from employment or the beginning of their temporary cessation of work will receive credit for time worked for the employer prior to the break in service for the purpose of establishing eligibility.

Employees returning after a period greater than 180 days must still reestablish eligibility for OFLA anew and will not receive credit for a prior service. While OFLA leave taken by employees who have been reemployed or have returned to work within a one-year period will continue to count toward the employee’s OFLA leave entitlement.

The eligibility of OFLA leave use has been expanded for any qualifying reason during a period of public health emergency to all employees of a covered employer if the employer has employed them for at least 30 days immediately before the leave begins and they worked an average of at least 25 hours per week during the 30 days immediately preceding the leave.

The bill also expands the list of qualifying OFLA reasons to include leave to care for a child of the employee “who requires home care due to the closure of the child’s school or child care provider as a result of a public health emergency.” As well as removing gendered language related to pregnancy and childbirth-related leave which allows any eligible employee may take OFLA leave for an illness, injury, or condition related to the employee’s own pregnancy or childbirth, without regard to gender.

The bill can be read here.

An article on the bill can be found here.

What do employers need to do?
Employers should read the above information and update their leave policies as needed.

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Oregon Passes CROWN Act

Update Applicable to:
All employers in Oregon.

What happened?
On June 11, 2021, Oregon Governor Brown signed into law House Bill 2935, also known as the CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair),

What are the details?
The act amends the Oregon Equality Act, which prohibits discrimination in employment, by including a new definition of “race” that “includes physical characteristics that are historically associated with race, including but not limited to natural hair, hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles.” It further defines “protective hairstyles” to include any “hairstyle, hair color or manner of wearing hair that includes, but is not limited to, braids, regardless of whether the braids are created with extensions or styled with adornments, locks and twists.” Additionally, the act includes provisions regarding employer dress codes. A dress code will now be prohibited if they have a disproportionate adverse impact on members of a protected class.

The bill can be read here.

What do employers need to do?
Employers should update their policies to reflect the new requirements.