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Council reviews draft to recognize work-related "mental wellness" leave; State HR flags possible conflicts
Summary
Staff presented provisional language to add work-related mental-wellness leave to the statutory sick-leave definition; the State Human Resources division cautioned that sick leave already covers mental-health needs without a diagnosis and the draft could create confusion unless narrowly targeted.
Staff presented a provisional draft (PD2) that would explicitly add paid mental-wellness leave for work-related acute traumatic events or chronic workplace trauma to the statutory definition of sick leave.
Laura Shirley summarized the proposal and said staff had circulated the draft to the Department of Administration's State Human Resources (State HR). State HR reported that current policy generally allows employees to use sick leave for mental-health needs without requiring a medical diagnosis and warned the draft could introduce confusion and create conflicts with existing employer policies. State HR also noted that changing the statutory definition would affect cities and counties and suggested limiting any change to defined occupations (for example, first responders) and adding sideboards to avoid unintended effects.
Council members asked staff to consult further with State HR and consider an alternate, narrower formulation proposed by stakeholders that would permit leave for preventative medical or mental-health care and expressly avoid preempting more generous local policies. Staff will return with refined language and State HR feedback before further action.
