Just in time for the holiday weekend, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) released its Paid Family Leave (PFL) employee premium rate and benefit level increase information for 2021.
For 2021, the employee premium rate will increase significantly, from 0.270% of gross wages (capped at $196.72/year) to 0.511% of gross wages (capped at $385.34/year).
Notably, the DFS also announced that for 2021 the PFL benefit level will increase to 67% of an employee’s wages for up to 12 weeks (up from 60% for 10 weeks). This increase could have been delayed in the DFS’s discretion, but the DFS instead announced that they will not implement any delay this year.
This means that the maximum PFL benefit in 2021 will be $971.61/week (up from $840.70/week in 2020). The underlying statewide average weekly wage increased from $1,401.17/week to $1,450.17/week, so that plays into this increase as well.
| COMPARISON OF PFL PROGRAM BENEFITS AND RATES 2018-2021 | ||||||
| Weeks of PFL Available | Statewide Average Weekly Wage | Benefit Rate | Maximum Weekly Benefit | Premium Rate | Maximum Annual Employee Contribution | |
| 2018 | 8 | $1,305.92 | 50% | $652.96 | 0.126% | $85.56 |
| 2019 | 10 | $1,357.11 | 55% | $746.41 | 0.153% | $107.97 |
| 2020 | 10 | $1,401.17 | 60% | $840.70 | 0.270% | $196.72 |
| 2021 | 12 | $1450.17 | 67% | $971.61 | 0.511% | $385.34 |
To prepare for the 2021 changes, employers will want to coordinate with their payroll providers to make sure that the new premium rate will be applied beginning January 1, 2021. To the extent any written employment policy documents include the specific PFL benefit or deduction levels, employers will also need to consider updating this information for 2021.
Need more information? Please contact any member of the firm’s Labor and Employment group for more information on these changes or New York’s Paid Family Leave Benefits Law generally.