Understanding San Francisco’s New Military Leave Pay Protection Act

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San Francisco passed a new Military Leave Pay Protection Act (MLPPA), effective February 19, 2023, that entitles employees who are members of the U.S. military reserves to receive paid leave for up to 30 days per year while on leave for military duty. Sparrow summarizes how this might affect your company’s leave administration.


MLPPA is applicable to employers with 100 or more employees worldwide; it does not matter if the employer is based or headquartered outside of San Francisco.

  • A covered employee under this law is anyone who works within the geographic boundaries of San Francisco, California, and is a member of the reserve corps of the U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard, or other uniformed service organization of the U.S.
  • Covered employers are required to pay SF employees on leave for military duty the difference between the amount of the employee’s gross military pay and the amount of gross pay the employee would have received had the employee worked their regular work schedule (excluding overtime).
  • San Francisco’s Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE) has provided FAQs.

With the ever-evolving landscape of employee leave, Sparrow’s here to keep you informed and help businesses like yours care for their employees.

Learn how our end-to-end leave management service does the heavy lifting for People teams while creating a stress-free employee experience.

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