In November 2021 the District of Columbia adopted emergency legislation extending the availability of unpaid, job-protected leave for certain COVID-19 related reasons under the DCFMLA. 

On January 14, 2022, the D.C. Office of Human Rights (OHR), which enforces the DCFMLA, published an updated poster on DCFMLA COVID-19 leave. Employers with 20 or more employees in the District are required to post this poster in a conspicuous place in the workplace. We recommend that the poster also be posted electronically (e.g., on the employer’s intranet or in a shared folder) for employees who work remotely.  

For details about DCFMLA COVID-19 leave, see OHR’s updated guidance and our prior post, which  discusses both DCFMLA COVID-19 leave and D.C.’s requirement that private employers provide up to 48 hours of paid vaccination leave annually for employees to receive or assist their children in receiving COVID-19 vaccinations and recover from vaccination-related side effects. 

DCFMLA COVID-19 leave and D.C. paid vaccination leave are currently in effect under emergency legislation that will expire in February 2022. However, D.C. has passed a temporary law that, following a 30-day period of congressional review, is expected to extend both leave requirements through most of 2022. The leave requirements could also be further extended by permanent legislation.