The federal government and state of Colorado public health emergency declarations for COVID-19 will expire on May 11. These changes represent the last public health declarations applicable for the use of Emergency Sick Leave under Colorado law.

The implementation of Colorado’s Healthy Families and Workplaces Act in 2021 created a provision for emergency sick leave covering all employees in Colorado. The details for the usage and restrictions on this leave type can be found on the Emergency Sick Leave webpage.

Under the law, employees are eligible to use emergency leave for up to four weeks after the order has ended. This means University of Colorado employees can continue to claim this leave type for qualifying absences through June 8.

After June 8, any employee who must take leave for a COVID-19 infection must use personal sick leave (or vacation leave) for their illness.

If you become ill with COVID-19 before the June 8 cutoff, be sure to request and record your state emergency sick leave promptly to ensure your payroll records accurately reflect the type of paid leave you’re using.