Fired After taking Sick Leave in NYC? Know Your Rights Under New York City's Protected Time Off Law

You took time off because you were sick. Or because your child needed you. Or because you had a medical appointment you could not miss.

Then you came back to work, and suddenly everything changed.

Maybe your hours were cut. Maybe your manager started writing you up. Maybe you were taken off the schedule altogether. Or maybe your employer simply told you that you were fired.

For many New York City workers, these situations can raise an important legal question: Did your employer punish you for using protected time off?

New York City's Protected Time Off Law gives covered workers significant rights when they need time away from work for qualifying reasons. The law was expanded in 2026 to provide additional leave and cover more circumstances in which employees may need to miss work. Employers generally cannot retaliate against employees for requesting or using leave protected by the law.

Morgan & Morgan stands with workers, fights to defend workers’ rights, and seeks to hold employers accountable when they violate those rights. If you were fired, disciplined, demoted, or otherwise punished after taking protected time off, contact Morgan & Morgan today for a free case evaluation to learn more about your legal options.

What Changed Under NYC's Protected Time Off Law?

New York City's law was previously commonly known as the Paid Safe and Sick Leave Law. Beginning February 22, 2026, expanded protections took effect under what the city now calls its Protected Time Off Law.

The changes did more than rename the law. Most notably, covered employees now receive an additional 32 hours of unpaid protected time off that is immediately available, including when an employee first begins working. The law also expanded the reasons employees can take protected leave, including certain childcare needs, caring for a family or household member with a disability, attending housing or public-benefits proceedings, and staying home during certain declared public emergencies.

The purpose is straightforward: workers may encounter situations where they need time away from work before they have accumulated enough paid leave.

Who Is Covered by NYC's Protected Time Off Law?

The law covers most people who work in New York City. That includes full-time and part-time employees, temporary and seasonal workers, domestic workers, per diem and on-call employees, and employees who live outside the city but work within New York City. Undocumented employees are also covered.

There are exceptions. Certain government workers, qualifying independent contractors, some unionized employees, and a limited number of other categories may fall outside the law.

Coverage can sometimes be more complicated than an employer's label suggests. For example, simply calling someone an "independent contractor" does not necessarily determine whether the worker is legally an employee entitled to protection.

Paid Versus Unpaid Protected Time Off

Most covered NYC workers are entitled to up to 40 or 56 hours of paid protected time off each year, depending primarily on employer size and other statutory requirements.

Employees may generally accrue paid protected time off as they work. The city also requires employers to provide employees with information about their available protected-time balances.

Paid protected time off may be used for qualifying reasons involving health, safety, family needs, and other circumstances covered by the law.

But one of the most significant changes in 2026 is that paid time is no longer the entire picture.

NYC Workers Now Receive an Additional 32 Hours of Unpaid Protected Time

As of February 22, 2026, covered employees must receive 32 hours of unpaid protected time off that is immediately available for use.

Unlike accrued paid time, employees do not have to work for weeks or months to build this bank. New employees receive the 32 hours when they begin employment, and employers must provide a new 32-hour bank at the beginning of each calendar year. Employers cannot prorate the amount simply because someone begins work partway through the year.

This can be especially important for workers who become ill shortly after starting a new job or experience an unexpected family or personal emergency before they have accumulated much paid time.

The hours may be unpaid, but that does not mean they are unprotected.

What Reasons Allow Employees to Take Protected Time Off?

NYC's Protected Time Off Law reaches considerably beyond the traditional idea of staying home with the flu.

Covered employees may use protected time off for reasons including:

• Their own physical or mental illness, injury, diagnosis, treatment, or preventive care
• Caring for a family member with health needs
• Caring for a child, including certain school holidays or childcare disruptions
• Caring for a family or household member with a disability
• Seeking assistance or taking safety measures related to domestic violence, stalking, unwanted sexual contact, human trafficking, or workplace violence
• Attending or preparing for certain housing or public-benefits proceedings and appointments
• Staying home in qualifying circumstances involving a government-declared public disaster

The law uses a broad definition of family, including spouses, domestic partners, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, certain blood relatives, and people whose close relationship with the employee is equivalent to a family relationship.

In other words, "protected time off" now covers a much wider range of real-life circumstances than a conventional sick day.

What Notice Can an Employer Require?

Employers may establish reasonable procedures for employees to notify them that protected time off is needed, but those procedures must comply with the law.

For a foreseeable absence, such as a previously scheduled doctor's appointment, an employer may require advance notice.

For an unexpected absence, such as suddenly becoming ill or experiencing an unexpected childcare disruption, an employee generally cannot be required to provide advance notice before the need for leave arises.

Employees also generally do not have to disclose detailed private information about why they need protected time.

Documentation rules are limited as well. According to NYC guidance, an employer cannot require documentation when an employee uses three or fewer consecutive workdays of protected time off. Documentation may generally be requested when an absence extends for four or more consecutive workdays.

Employers must also provide workers with a written policy explaining how protected time off works and give employees a written Notice of Employee Rights.

What Does NYC Consider Retaliation?

Retaliation does not begin and end with being fired. NYC identifies numerous employment actions that may constitute retaliation when they are taken because an employee exercised or attempted to exercise rights under the Protected Time Off Law.

Those actions can include:

• Termination
• Demotion
• Suspension
• Harassment
• Reduced hours
• Reduced pay
• Discipline
• Blacklisting
• Penalizing an employee through an attendance-point system
• Punishing someone for failing to meet a quota because they used protected time
• Informing another employer about an employee's exercise of protected rights

Importantly, employees do not necessarily have to specifically mention the Protected Time Off Law to receive retaliation protection. NYC guidance also states that retaliation may be established when exercising protected rights motivated the employer's action, even if other factors also played a role.

Fired After Requesting or Using Protected Time? The Timeline Matters

A termination that occurs after protected leave does not automatically prove retaliation.

But timing can matter.

Suppose an employee requests protected time off, a supervisor becomes angry about it, and the employee is fired as soon as they return. Or an employee who previously had no disciplinary history suddenly begins receiving warnings immediately after taking leave.

Those circumstances may justify a closer look. Evidence could include text messages, emails, scheduling records, attendance records, disciplinary notices, pay stubs, performance reviews, or statements from supervisors and coworkers.

Employees should preserve as much documentation as possible, particularly communications showing that they requested leave, explained the reason to the extent required, and followed the employer's procedures.

What Remedies May Be Available After Illegal Retaliation?

Workers who suffer retaliation may be entitled to significant remedies depending on the circumstances.

NYC's enforcement rules allow for relief that can include rehiring or reinstatement, compensation for lost wages and benefits, front pay in some cases, and other monetary or equitable relief. The specific remedies available depend on the violation and how the claim is pursued.

That means a worker who was unlawfully fired may potentially seek more than a finding that the employer acted improperly. In appropriate cases, the remedy may involve restoring the employee's position or compensating them for income they lost because of the retaliation.

No result is guaranteed, however, and the facts of each employment dispute matter.

New York State Protections May Apply Too

NYC employees may also receive protection under New York State law.

New York State requires private-sector employers to provide qualifying sick leave and prohibits retaliation against employees for exercising their sick-leave rights. State guidance also provides that an employee returning from protected sick leave must generally be restored to the position the employee held beforehand, with the same pay and terms and conditions of employment.

NYC's law goes further in several respects, including the additional 32 hours of immediately available unpaid protected time and its expanded qualifying uses.

Depending on the circumstances, other state or federal employment protections may also apply.

Morgan & Morgan Stands With Workers Who Were Punished for Taking Protected Time

Taking care of yourself or your family should not cost you your job when the law protects your right to be away from work.

When an employer responds to protected leave by firing an employee, cutting their hours, demoting them, or imposing discipline, workers may have legal options.

Morgan & Morgan represents workers whose employers have violated their rights. If you believe you were fired or retaliated against for using protected time off in New York City, contact Morgan & Morgan for a free case evaluation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is NYC's Protected Time Off Law?

New York City's Protected Time Off Law, formally part of the city's Earned Safe and Sick Time Act, gives most employees working in NYC the right to take job-protected time away from work for qualifying reasons.

The law covers both paid and unpaid time. Most covered employees are entitled to up to 40 or 56 hours of paid protected time annually, depending on employer size and applicable requirements. As of February 22, 2026, employees also receive 32 hours of immediately available unpaid protected time.

Protected reasons include an employee's health needs, caring for family members, certain safety concerns, childcare, housing and public-benefits matters, and qualifying public emergencies.

Just as importantly, the law prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who request or use protected leave. A worker who believes they were fired, disciplined, or otherwise punished because they exercised these rights may be able to challenge the employer's conduct.

How much protected time off do NYC workers receive?

Most covered NYC employees are entitled to up to 40 or 56 hours of paid protected time off per year, depending largely on the employer's size.

In addition, employees receive 32 hours of unpaid protected time off that is immediately available. This is separate from the employee's accrued paid protected time.

The unpaid bank can be particularly important when a worker needs leave before accumulating enough paid hours. For example, someone who has only recently started a job may not yet have earned significant paid protected time but still receives the 32-hour unpaid bank immediately.

NYC law also provides 20 hours of paid prenatal leave for qualifying pregnancy-related healthcare, which is separate from other protected time.

Because leave calculations can depend on the employer and employee's circumstances, workers should review their pay statements and employer policies to confirm their balances.

Can my employer punish me for requesting protected time off?

Generally, no. An employer may not lawfully retaliate against an employee because the employee requested or used protected time off or exercised another right under the law.

Retaliation can include obvious actions such as firing or demotion, but NYC's protections are broader than that.

An employer may potentially violate the law by reducing an employee's hours or pay, disciplining them, suspending them, harassing them, applying attendance points for protected absences, or otherwise taking adverse action because the employee exercised protected rights.

Workers do not necessarily have to say the words "Protected Time Off Law" in order to be protected. An employee who simply requests qualifying leave can still be exercising a legal right.

If punishment follows shortly after a protected-time request, employees should preserve communications, schedules, disciplinary records, and other evidence that may help establish why the employer acted.

Can I be rehired if I was illegally fired for taking protected leave?

New York City's rules allow for equitable remedies in retaliation cases that may include rehiring or reinstatement to a former or equivalent position, along with lost compensation and other appropriate relief.

Whether reinstatement is appropriate depends on the facts of the case. In some employment disputes, returning to the former workplace may be practical. In others, the employment relationship may have deteriorated to the point that another remedy is more appropriate.

Workers may also potentially seek compensation for wages and benefits they lost because of unlawful retaliation.

Because available remedies depend on the specific violation, evidence, and legal claims involved, employees who believe they were illegally terminated should consider having an employment attorney evaluate what happened and what forms of recovery may be available.

Does the law apply if I just started my job?

Yes, in many cases. A newly hired employee who otherwise qualifies for protection under NYC's law does not have to wait months before receiving every protection.

Employees generally begin accruing paid protected time from the start of employment. More significantly, as of February 22, 2026, new employees must receive 32 hours of unpaid protected time that is immediately available on their first day of employment. Employers cannot prorate that bank simply because the employee starts partway through the calendar year.

That means a worker who gets sick, encounters an unexpected childcare issue, or experiences another qualifying event shortly after being hired may still have protected time available even if they have accumulated little paid leave.

If an employer tells a newly hired worker that they have "not been here long enough" to receive any protection, that explanation may not accurately reflect NYC law.