Connecticut Paid Leave Act

Connecticut's Paid Leave Act provides eligible workers with up to 12 weeks of paid leave (plus an additional 2 weeks for pregnancy-related incapacity) for their own serious health condition, to care for a family member, to bond with a new child, for organ or bone marrow donation, for qualifying military needs, or for safe leave related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking (up to 12 days). Benefits are funded through employee payroll deductions of 0.5% of wages, administered by the CT Paid Leave Authority. There is no waiting period before benefits begin.

Most Connecticut workers are covered, including those employed by private employers with 1 or more employees and state employees. To be eligible, you must have earned at least $2,325 in the highest-earning quarter of the base period. Benefits are calculated at 95% of wages up to a low-wage threshold (40 times the state minimum wage) and 60% of wages above that, subject to a maximum weekly benefit of $1,016.40 (2026).

Covered family members include your spouse, child, parent, parent-in-law, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, or any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association you show to be the equivalent of those family relationships.

Job protection under the Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act (CT FMLA) applies to all employers with 1 or more employees (expanded from the former 75-employee threshold effective January 1, 2022). Employees who have worked for at least 3 months are entitled to reinstatement to the same or equivalent position after leave.

Connecticut was a pioneer in mental health parity legislation and enforces strong anti-discrimination protections through the Connecticut Fair Employment Practices Act (CFEPA), which prohibits disability discrimination, including mental health conditions, for employers with 3 or more employees. The Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) investigates and resolves complaints.