Assembly lets construction workers aggregate weeks to qualify for paid family leave

The Assembly passed a measure (A.40727) amending the workers’ compensation framework to let construction workers employed by signatory employers aggregate nonconsecutive weeks across employers when determining eligibility for paid family leave.

Assemblymember Bronson, the bill’s sponsor, said the measure addresses the construction industry’s reality that workers “bounce from one employer to the next” and therefore cannot meet the current requirement of 26 consecutive weeks with a single employer. He explained the bill would allow workers to “make that qualification, by accruing time with separate employers over, I believe, a 39, week period.”

Members asked how administration of aggregated time would work and who would track it. Bronson said contractor associations and building-trade unions already keep records for prevailing-wage and benefit purposes and jointly would maintain the time for paid‑family‑leave purposes. He also emphasized that employers do not pay for the benefit directly: “This benefit is paid by the employee,” Bronson said, adding that paid family leave deductions appear on pay stubs as an employee deduction.

Some members raised a separate concern: if a worker had already accrued the requisite aggregated weeks while working for other employers, could that worker be hired by a new employer and immediately claim benefits without having worked for the new employer. Sponsors replied that the bill recognizes industry realities and uses insured, employee‑funded coverage; sponsor Bronson said there was “no harm to the employer” from the change and urged colleagues to support the bill.

The clerk recorded the vote and announced the bill passed with 139 ayes. Supporters said the change would extend access to paid family leave to construction workers whose work patterns involve multiple signatory employers; opponents questioned potential employer impacts when a vested worker moves between employers.