Rhode Island — Leave Laws

Rhode Island's Healthy and Safe Families and Workplaces Act requires employers with 18 or more employees to provide paid sick and safe leave. Employers with 17 or fewer employees must provide earned sick and safe leave, but it does not need to be paid. The law applies to any employer with at least one employee in Rhode Island, including full-time, part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers. The Act took effect July 1, 2018.

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5

Employees accrue paid sick and safe leave at a rate of one hour for every 35 hours worked. The annual usage cap is 40 hours per year (following a phase-in of 24 hours in 2018 and 32 hours in 2019). Employers may provide a higher annual limit in both accrual and use if they choose. Exempt employees are presumed to work 40 hours per week for accrual purposes unless their normal workweek is shorter.

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5

Rhode Island's Healthy and Safe Families and Workplaces Act sets out multiple specific uses for paid sick and safe leave under R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-6(a). Among these, the law expressly permits use of leave not only for an employee’s or family member’s health need, but also during certain public health emergency situations and when necessary because of domestic violence or similar harm:

1. Employee’s own health needs

• For the employee’s mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition.
• To obtain medical diagnosis, care, or treatment for a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition.
• For preventive medical care.

2. Family member care

• To care for a family member (broadly defined in § 28-57-3) with a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition.
• To obtain medical diagnosis, care, or treatment for a family member.
• For preventive medical care for a family member.

3. Public health emergency — business, school, or place-of-care closures, and communicable disease exposure

• When the employee’s place of business is closed by order of a public official due to a public health emergency.
• When the employee’s child’s school or place of care is closed by order of a public official due to a public health emergency.
• When a public health authority or health care provider determines that the employee or a family member’s presence in the community would jeopardize the health of others due to exposure to a communicable disease, even if there is no formal closure order.

4. Domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking

• For the employee or their family member to address the effects of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including medical and legal matters and relocation.

The Act also establishes anti-fraud provisions: employers may discipline employees, up to and including termination, for misuse of sick leave, such as fraud or activity inconsistent with allowable purposes (§ 28-57-6(i)). Discipline for a clear pattern of leave use around weekends or holidays is permitted only if reasonable documentation is not provided (§ 28-57-6(j)). For absences longer than three consecutive workdays, employers may require reasonable documentation provided advance written notice is given, but may not require disclosure of illness details or specifics around domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking unless required by law (§ 28-57-6(f)).

These permitted uses are based on the statutory text; as of June 2026, there is no further regulatory guidance limiting or expanding these categories for public health emergency closures or exposure situations.

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-6

Rhode Island counts employees for paid sick and safe leave purposes based on whether the individual’s primary place of employment is in Rhode Island—even if they work remotely, on hybrid arrangements, or are on multi-state payrolls. An employer meets the threshold for paid leave (18 or more employees) if it had, on average, 18 or more Rhode Island employees during the previous year’s two quarters with the highest employment (the reference period is the previous payroll year, per 260‑RICR‑30‑05‑5.5(B)(1)). This count is exclusive to Rhode Island employees; employees who do not physically work in Rhode Island are not included in the threshold.

How to count employees:

• The regulation defines a "Rhode Island employee" as someone whose primary place of employment is Rhode Island. An employee is counted if, during the most recent twelve months, the plurality of their hours were physically worked in Rhode Island, even if that is less than 50% (the "plurality" rule: if Rhode Island is where they spent more working time than any other single state, they count here—see 260‑RICR‑30‑05‑5.5(B)(3)).
• Employers must count all unique positions in Rhode Island—full-time, part-time, seasonal, and temporary employees.
• There is no exclusion for multi-state payrolls or hybrid/remote workers as long as their factual primary work location is in Rhode Island.

Remote and hybrid employees: If an employee splits work across several states (or between home and an employer site), the determining factor is where they physically perform the most work hours in a year. Employers should rely on actual work patterns, not just employment contracts or HQ location, for their counts.

The annual calculation is performed once per year and governs paid leave responsibility for the next calendar year. Newly-formed employers gain a paid leave duty as soon as their workforce reaches the 18-employee average in any two quarters of operation.

Source: 260‑RICR‑30‑05‑5.5 Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5

Rhode Island employers must permit employees to begin accruing sick and safe leave under the Healthy and Safe Families and Workplaces Act immediately upon the start of employment or the Act’s effective date—there is no lawful waiting period for accrual. However, employers may impose a waiting period before a newly hired employee is permitted to use (i.e., take) accrued leave.

General (Regular) Employees: Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5(d), employers may require newly hired employees to wait up to 90 calendar days after their start date before using accrued sick and safe leave, provided the employee receives written notice of this requirement at hire. During this period, employees still accrue leave, but cannot use it until the waiting period passes.

Seasonal Employees: For employees classified as seasonal (as defined in § 28-57-3), employers may enforce a waiting period of up to 150 calendar days before the employee can use accrued leave. "Seasonal employee" in Rhode Island law means an employee who is hired into a position for a prearranged period of twenty weeks or fewer in a year (§ 28-57-3). Accrual must occur during this period.

Temporary Employees: Temporary employees, also as defined in § 28-57-3 (that is, individuals employed for a finite period or assignment, not on a permanent or indefinite basis), may be required to wait up to 180 calendar days before they may use accrued sick and safe leave. Accrual must begin upon hire, but use may be delayed up to this maximum.

These waiting periods are statutory ceilings; an employer may opt for a shorter period or allow use immediately. Employers must provide written notice of any imposed waiting period at hire. After the waiting period, all accrued sick and safe leave is available to the employee under the normal rules of the Act.

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5(d), (j), (k)

Rhode Island’s Healthy and Safe Families and Workplaces Act (HSFWA) allows employers to use a combined paid time off (PTO) policy—that is, one that pools sick, vacation, and personal leave—if and only if the PTO bank meets specific statutory and regulatory requirements. If the PTO policy fully satisfies these statutory criteria, it is treated as compliant with Rhode Island’s sick and safe leave law.

Key statutory requirements for PTO to substitute for HSFWA accrual:

• Front-loading: The employer must provide at least 40 hours of paid time off at the beginning of each benefit year (with permissible lower thresholds for the years 2018 and 2019). This means the entire PTO bank—at or above the statutory minimum—must be available for immediate use at the start of the year, and not accrued over time. (R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5(e); 260-RICr-30-05-5, Reg. 5.4.1(B))

• Permitted uses: The PTO policy must allow employees to use leave for all reasons allowed under the HSFWA (i.e., not just vacation or personal time, but also sick and safe leave purposes, including reasons related to public health emergencies and domestic violence). (R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-6; 260-RICr-30-05-5, Reg. 5.4.1(B))

• No carryover or accrual tracking required: Employers who meet both conditions above are not required to allow carryover of unused time into the next year, nor to track accrual incrementally. Once the full PTO amount is provided up front, it may be used at any time in the benefit year, and any unused balance may be forfeited at year-end. (260-RICr-30-05-5, Reg. 5.4.1(B)-(C))

• No payout obligation: Rhode Island law does NOT require payout of unused sick and safe leave or front-loaded PTO upon separation from employment, unless the PTO policy itself or another employer policy or contract requires it. (260-RICr-30-05-5, Reg. 5.4.1(B))

• Tracking alternative—accrual method: Employers who do not front-load PTO at the statutory minimum must operate an accrual system (at least 1 hour per 35 worked, up to 40 hours per year), must track accrual and carryover, and must provide at least the statutory minimum on a pro-rata basis for part-time or new employees. (R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5(a)-(e); 260-RICr-30-05-5, Reg. 5.4.1(A)-(C))

Summary: A combined PTO bank is allowed if (1) it is front-loaded with at least 40 hours at the start of the year, and (2) its permitted uses encompass all the purposes authorized by Rhode Island’s HSFWA. If these are satisfied, the employer is relieved from tracking accrual, carryover obligations, and payout for unused time under state law.

Source: 260-RICR-30-05-5, Reg. 5.4.1 Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5 Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-6

Payout of Accrued but Unused Sick and Safe Leave Upon Separation Rhode Island’s Healthy and Safe Families and Workplaces Act does not require employers to pay out accrued but unused sick and safe leave when an employee separates from employment. The relevant statute and accompanying regulations specify that unused earned sick and safe leave is not required to be paid out at termination, regardless of whether the separation is voluntary or involuntary.

Reinstatement of Leave Upon Rehire If an employee is rehired by the same employer within 135 days of separation, any previously accrued but unused sick and safe leave must be reinstated. The statute explicitly provides that the employee is entitled to the amount of unused leave that existed at the time of separation, plus any additional leave that would have accrued during the separation period (if the separation was less than 135 days). The rehire rule applies regardless of whether the employee resigned or was terminated.

This reinstatement right applies to all employers subject to the Act and covers all types of leave under its scope—paid or unpaid, depending on employer size and classification under Rhode Island law.

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-57-5(e)