In the United States, employee leave entitlements are primarily governed by a mix of federal, state, and local laws, alongside employer-specific policies. Unlike many other countries, there is no single federal law mandating paid time off for vacation, sick leave, or public holidays for all employees. This decentralized approach means that leave benefits can vary significantly depending on where an employee works and the specific terms of their employment contract or collective bargaining agreement.
Employers often provide various types of leave as part of their benefits package to attract and retain talent, even when not legally required. However, a growing number of states and cities have enacted legislation mandating specific types of leave, such as paid sick leave or paid family leave, creating a complex compliance landscape for businesses operating across different jurisdictions. Understanding these varying requirements is crucial for effective workforce management.
Annual Vacation Leave Entitlements and Regulations
Federal law in the United States does not require employers to provide paid or unpaid annual vacation leave to employees. Vacation benefits are typically a matter of agreement between an employer and an employee, or they may be established through company policy or collective bargaining.
While there is no federal minimum, many employers voluntarily offer vacation time as a standard benefit. The amount of vacation offered often increases with an employee's tenure at the company. Common practices include accrual systems where employees earn a certain number of hours or days of vacation time per pay period or per year.
Some states have laws regarding how accrued vacation time must be handled upon termination of employment, often requiring employers to pay out unused vacation time, but these laws do not mandate the provision or accrual rate of vacation itself.
Public Holidays and Observances
The United States observes several federal holidays each year. While federal government employees typically receive paid time off for these days, private sector employers are generally not required by federal law to provide paid time off for holidays. Many employers, however, choose to offer paid holidays as a benefit.
Here are the federal holidays observed in 2025:
| Holiday | Date (2025) |
|---|---|
| New Year's Day | January 1 |
| Martin Luther King, Jr. Day | January 20 |
| Presidents' Day | February 17 |
| Memorial Day | May 26 |
| Juneteenth National Ind. Day | June 19 |
| Independence Day | July 4 |
| Labor Day | September 1 |
| Columbus Day | October 13 |
| Veterans Day | November 11 |
| Thanksgiving Day | November 27 |
| Christmas Day | December 25 |
Some employers also observe additional holidays, such as the day after Thanksgiving or Christmas Eve. State and local governments may also designate additional holidays.
Sick Leave Policies and Pay
There is no federal law in the United States mandating paid sick leave for all private-sector employees. However, a significant number of states and cities have enacted laws requiring employers to provide paid sick leave. These laws vary in terms of eligibility, accrual rates, maximum accrual caps, and permissible uses of sick time.
Typically, state and local sick leave laws require employees to accrue sick time based on hours worked (e.g., 1 hour of sick time for every 30 or 40 hours worked), up to a certain annual cap (e.g., 40-72 hours per year). Permissible uses often include an employee's own illness or medical care, caring for a family member, and sometimes reasons related to domestic violence or sexual assault.
Employers in jurisdictions without mandatory sick leave laws may still offer sick leave as a benefit, either paid or unpaid, according to their own policies.
Parental Leave (Maternity, Paternity, Adoption) Entitlements
The primary federal law related to parental leave is the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The FMLA provides eligible employees of covered employers with up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for specified family and medical reasons, including the birth of a child and to care for the newborn child within one year of birth, or the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care and to care for the newly placed child within one year of placement.
FMLA eligibility requires the employee to have worked for a covered employer for at least 12 months, have at least 1,250 hours of service during the 12 months before the leave, and work at a location where the employer has 50 or more employees within 75 miles.
Several states have enacted their own paid family leave laws, which provide wage replacement benefits during leave taken for reasons similar to FMLA, including bonding with a new child. These state programs are funded through employee and/or employer payroll contributions.
Examples of states with paid family leave programs include California, New Jersey, Rhode Island, New York, Washington, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Oregon, Colorado, and Delaware, among others. The duration of paid leave and the percentage of wage replacement vary significantly by state.
Other Types of Leave
Beyond vacation, holidays, sick leave, and parental leave, employees in the U.S. may be entitled to or offered other types of leave:
- Jury Duty Leave: Federal and state laws prohibit employers from penalizing employees for serving on a jury. While employers are not federally required to pay employees during jury duty, some states mandate partial or full pay, and many employers voluntarily provide paid jury duty leave.
- Military Leave: The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) protects the job rights of individuals who voluntarily or involuntarily leave employment to undertake military service. Employees have the right to reemployment with their civilian employer following military service, with certain conditions. This leave is typically unpaid by the civilian employer, though some employers may offer supplemental pay.
- Bereavement Leave: There is no federal law requiring employers to provide bereavement leave. Many employers offer a few days of paid or unpaid leave for employees to mourn the death of a close family member.
- Voting Leave: Some states require employers to provide employees with paid or unpaid time off to vote if they do not have sufficient time outside of work hours.
- Witness Duty Leave: Similar to jury duty, some jurisdictions protect employees who are required to testify in court.
- Sabbatical Leave: Typically offered by employers (common in academia) for long-tenured employees to pursue professional development, research, or rest. This is not legally mandated and is entirely at the employer's discretion.
- Study Leave: Similar to sabbatical, this is an employer-provided benefit allowing employees time off for education or training, often related to their job.
The availability and terms of these "other" types of leave depend heavily on state law and individual employer policies.
