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LEGISLATURE OF NEBRASKA
ONE HUNDRED NINTH LEGISLATURE
SECOND SESSION
LEGISLATIVE BILL 1249
Introduced by Sorrentino, 39; Hallstrom, 1; Strommen, 47.
Read first time January 21, 2026
Committee: Business and Labor
A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to the Nebraska Healthy Families and1
Workplaces Act; to amend sections 48-3802, 48-3803, and 48-3806,2
Revised Statutes Supplement, 2025; to redefine terms; to change3
provisions relating to the carryover of paid sick time; to eliminate4
obsolete provisions; and to repeal the original sections.5
Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,6
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Section 1. Section 48-3802, Revised Statutes Supplement, 2025, is1
amended to read: 2
48-3802 For purposes of the Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces3
Act: 4
(1) Department means the Department of Labor; 5
(2) Employ means to permit to work by an employer pursuant to an6
employment relationship; 7
(3) Employee means any individual employed by an employer, but does8
not include: 9
(a) An individual owner-operator; 10
(b) An independent contractor; 11
(c) An individual who works in Nebraska for fewer than eighty hours12
in a calendar year; 13
(d) An individual who is employed in agricultural employment of a14
seasonal or other temporary nature; 15
(e) An "employee" as defined by 45 U.S.C. 351(d) who is subject to16
the federal Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, 45 U.S.C. 351 et seq.;17
or 18
(f) An individual under sixteen years of age; or19
(g) An individual with any amount of an ownership interest in an20
employer; 21
(4)(a) Employer means any individual, partnership, limited liability22
company, association, corporation, business trust, legal representative,23
or organized group of persons who employs eleven or more employees.24
(b) Employer does not include the United States , or the State of25
Nebraska or its agencies, departments, or political subdivisions , any26
corporation which operates a private, parochial, or denominational27
elementary or secondary school which fulfills the applicable28
accreditation or approval requirements established by the State Board of29
Education pursuant to section 79-318, or any private postsecondary30
institution; 31
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(5) Family member means: 1
(a) Any of the following, regardless of age: A biological, adopted,2
or foster child, a stepchild, a legal ward, or a child to whom the3
employee stands in loco parentis; 4
(b) A biological, foster, step, or adoptive parent or a legal5
guardian of an employee or an employee's spouse; 6
(c) A person who stood in loco parentis to the employee or the7
employee's spouse when the employee or employee's spouse was a minor8
child; 9
(d) A person to whom the employee is legally married under the laws10
of any state; 11
(e) A grandparent, grandchild, or sibling, whether of a biological,12
foster, adoptive, or step relationship, of the employee or the employee's13
spouse; or 14
(f) Any other individual related by blood to the employee or whose15
close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family16
relationship; 17
(6) Health care professional means any person licensed under any18
federal or state law to provide medical or emergency services;19
(7) Paid sick time means time that is compensated at the same hourly20
rate and with the same benefits, including health care benefits, as the21
employee typically earns during hours worked and that is provided by an22
employer to an employee for the purposes described in section 48-3804,23
and in no case shall the amount of this hourly rate be less than that24
provided under section 48-1203. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for25
employees paid on a commission, piece-rate, mileage, or fee-for-service26
basis, paid sick time means time that is compensated at an hourly rate27
determined by the employer using the average weekly rate calculation28
under section 48-126, which shall then be reduced to an hourly rate based29
on a forty-hour workweek, and that is provided by an employer to an30
employee for the purposes described in section 48-3804. Paid sick time31
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includes time made available to employees for purposes including, but not1
limited to, the purposes described in section 48-3804 under a paid leave2
policy described in subsection (7) of section 48-3803;3
(8) Public health emergency means a declaration or proclamation4
related to a public health threat, risk, disaster, or emergency that is5
made or issued by a federal, state, or local official with the authority6
to make or issue such a declaration or proclamation;7
(9) Retaliatory personnel action means a denial of any right8
guaranteed under the Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces Act and any9
threat, discharge, suspension, demotion, reduction of hours or pay, or10
other adverse action against an employee for exercising or attempting to11
exercise any right guaranteed in the Nebraska Healthy Families and12
Workplaces Act; 13
(10)(a) Small business means an employer with at least eleven but14
fewer than twenty employees during a given week, including full-time,15
part-time, or temporary employees. 16
(b) Small business does not include an employer that maintained17
twenty or more employees on its payroll in each of twenty or more18
calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year; and19
(11) Year means a regular and consecutive twelve-month period as20
determined by the employer. 21
Sec. 2. Section 48-3803, Revised Statutes Supplement, 2025, is22
amended to read: 23
48-3803 (1) All employees shall begin accruing paid sick time after24
eighty hours of consecutive employment, at which point employees shall25
then accrue a minimum of one hour of paid sick time for every thirty26
hours worked. Unless the employer selects a higher limit, this section27
does not entitle an employee to earn or use more than:28
(a) Forty hours of paid sick time in a year for an employee of a29
small business; or 30
(b) Fifty-six hours of paid sick time in a year for an employee of31
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an employer that is not a small business. 1
(2) Employees who are exempt from overtime requirements under 292
U.S.C. 213(a)(1) or 29 U.S.C. 213(b)(1) of the federal Fair Labor3
Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq., shall be assumed to work forty4
hours in each workweek for purposes of paid sick time accrual unless5
their typical workweek is less than forty hours, in which case paid sick6
time accrues based upon that typical workweek. 7
(3) Paid sick time requirements provided under the Nebraska Healthy8
Families and Workplaces Act shall begin October 1, 2025. An employee9
shall be entitled to use paid sick time as it is accrued. An employer may10
provide all paid sick time that an employee is expected to accrue in a11
year at the beginning of the year. 12
(4) Paid sick time provided to an employee on or after January 1,13
2025, and before October 1, 2025, shall be counted toward an employer's14
obligations under the Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces Act for15
calendar year 2025. 16
(5) Accrued paid sick time shall be carried over to the following17
year, except that a . A small business is not required to permit an18
employee to carryover or use more than forty hours of paid sick time per19
year, and other employers are not required to permit an employee to20
carryover or use more than fifty-six hours of paid sick time per year.21
(6) In lieu of carryover of unused paid sick time provided pursuant22
to this section from one year to the next, an employer may pay an23
employee for unused paid sick time provided pursuant to this section at24
the end of a year and provide the employee with an amount of paid sick25
time that meets or exceeds the requirements of subsections (1) and (3) of26
this section that is available for the employee's immediate use at the27
beginning of the subsequent year. 28
(7) Any employer with a paid leave policy, such as a paid time off29
policy, who makes available an amount of paid leave that equals or30
exceeds the requirements of the Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces31
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Act and that may be used as paid sick time in accordance with section1
48-3804 is not required to provide additional paid sick time under the2
act and is not obligated to allow an employee to accrue or carryover3
benefits beyond the employer's existing paid leave policy.4
(8) At its discretion, an employer may loan paid sick time to an5
employee in advance of accrual by such employee. 6
(9) If an employee is transferred to a separate division, entity, or7
location, but remains employed by the same employer, the employee is8
entitled to all paid sick time accrued at the prior division, entity, or9
location and is entitled to use all paid sick time as provided in the10
Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces Act. When there is a separation11
from employment and the employee is rehired within twelve months of12
separation by the same employer, previously accrued paid sick time that13
had not been used or paid out to the employee shall be reinstated. The14
employee shall be entitled to use accrued paid sick time and accrue15
additional paid sick time at the recommencement of employment.16
(10) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require employers17
to pay an employee for unused paid sick time upon the employee's18
separation from employment. 19
Sec. 3. Section 48-3806, Revised Statutes Supplement, 2025, is20
amended to read: 21
48-3806 (1) Employers shall give employees written notice of the22
following at the commencement of employment or by September 15, 2025,23
whichever is later: That beginning October 1, 2025, employees are24
entitled to paid sick time; the amount of paid sick time; the terms of25
its use guaranteed under the Nebraska Healthy Families and Workplaces26
Act; that retaliatory personnel action against employees who request or27
use paid sick time is prohibited; that each employee has the right to28
file a suit or complaint if paid sick time as required by the act is29
denied by the employer or the employee is subjected to retaliatory30
personnel action for requesting or taking paid sick time; and the contact31
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information for the department where questions about rights and1
responsibilities under the act can be answered. 2
(2) The notices required in subsection (1) of this section shall be3
provided in: 4
(a) English; and 5
(b) Any language that is the first language spoken by at least five6
percent of the employer's workforce if the department has provided a7
model notice in such language. 8
(3) The amount of paid sick time available to the employee, the9
amount of paid sick time taken by the employee to date in the year, and10
the amount of pay the employee has received as paid sick time shall be11
recorded in, or on an attachment to, the employee's regular paycheck.12
(4) Employers shall display a poster that contains the information13
required in subsection (1) of this section in a conspicuous and14
accessible place in each establishment where such employees are employed.15
If an employer does not maintain a physical workplace or an employee16
teleworks or performs work through a web-based or app-based platform, the17
employer shall provide notice of such information via electronic18
communication or a conspicuous posting in the web-based or app-based19
platform. The poster displayed shall be in: 20
(a) English; and 21
(b) Any language that is the first language spoken by at least five22
percent of the employer's workforce if the department has provided23
posters in such language. 24
(5) The department shall create and make available to employers, in25
all languages spoken by at least five percent of Nebraska's workforce and26
any language deemed appropriate by the department, model notices and27
posters that contain the information required under subsection (1) of28
this section and for employers' use in complying with subsections (1) and29
(4) of this section. 30
Sec. 4. Original sections 48-3802, 48-3803, and 48-3806, Revised31
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Statutes Supplement, 2025, are repealed. 1
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