Colorado state workers to obtain paid family medical go away starting in January

Colorado state employees who have recently worked for the government for at least 12 months will be entitled to up to two weeks of paid family vacation, Governor Jared Polis announced on Monday.

The program starts in January and workers can use the 80 hours to recover from illness, care for a new child or care for a loved one. The plan announced on Monday was scaled back from previous versions of an eight-week vacation program that the governor had tried to get the state parliament’s joint budget committee to approve.

“One of the core values ​​of my administration is supporting families. … I am proud to say that paid vacation is now becoming a reality for government employees, many of whom have worked day and night over the past year to ensure that we can save the lives of the Coloradans and emerge stronger from this public health crisis. Polis said in a statement.

Colorado voters approved a paid family and sick leave program for all workers for up to 12 weeks in November, but it won’t come into effect until 2024. Government employees can take two weeks of paid vacation until the expansion in 2024.

“The proposal that the governor has put together is really just a bridge until we fully implement the paid family and sick leave program,” said Senator Dominick Moreno, a trading town Democrat and chairman of the Joint Budget Committee.

Polis’ recent attempt to provide paid family and sick leave to civil servants was unanimously rejected in March on concerns that the governor was not empowered to implement such a program, which at the time was valued at around $ 10 million, initiate process beyond budget. However, the two-week program is expected to cost approximately $ 2.5 million to fill vacancies, and existing funds from the state employee benefits program will be used instead of soliciting JBC approval.

According to the governor, the reserve fund of the Group Benefits Plan has residual funding due to the reduced medical use during the pandemic. The state has enough money to fund the program through 2021, but the workers’ union and governor’s office may need to ask the general assembly for more funding in the future.

When the governor’s office returns with a request to the JBC, Moreno said they need to have another conversation about legal authority, but unlike previous requests, this is not a proposal for a new permanent program. It’s significantly less good than previous versions, and Colorado voters have chosen to give all workers, including government employees, paid vacation. He was happy that the state could offer its employees this advantage and appreciated the consultation with the JBC.

The Polis office believes it has authority to approve this program through the Department of Personnel and Administration and is awaiting further analysis by the Colorado Attorney General’s office.

Colorado WINS, the government employees’ union, welcomed the benefits, and Executive Director Hilary Glasgow called it a “step in the right direction” as the group negotiated its first contract with the state.

“Expanding benefits to the people on the forefront of the COVID response, regardless of skin color or paycheck size, are at the core of Colorado WINS ‘partnership with the state. When we work together to protect all workers and provide access to paid leave, government workers can better protect their communities, their families and themselves, “Glasgow said in a statement.

Glasgow expects the program will affect the vast majority of the more than 30,000 government employees. Pay for workers in the state of Colorado is 16.9% behind the private sector and has declined 14% over the past three years, according to the state.