SB 1024 (2026): Fire Departments Provide 26 Weeks Paid Disability Leave

Authority

Cal. Legislature

Citation

Stats. 2026, ch. 9

Effective Date

January 1, 2027

Senate Bill 1024, authored by Senator Menjivar, adds a new chapter to the Government Code requiring specified fire departments to provide up to 26 weeks of paid leave to firefighters who are disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. The measure takes effect January 1, 2027. It sets eligibility rules, pay standards, benefit continuation, and reinstatement requirements for covered firefighting members.

Background

Under existing law, the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 entitles employees who work in California for the same employer for 30 or more days within a year to paid sick days, accrued at not less than one hour for every 30 hours worked, subject to use, accrual, and carryover limits. That general framework did not provide a dedicated paid leave for postpartum recovery.

SB 1024 responds to that gap for firefighters. The Legislature found that firefighting presents unique health challenges for women, that inadequate parental leave has contributed to workforce attrition, and that postpartum recovery is a medical necessity requiring time free from hazardous duty. The bill adds Chapter 9.6.1 (commencing with Government Code section 3270) to Division 4 of Title 1.

What the Law Requires

Government Code section 3270 requires a covered fire department to provide a paid leave of absence of up to 26 weeks to a firefighter who requests leave because the firefighter is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. The department may require written medical certification from the firefighter’s health care provider documenting the disability, the anticipated start date, and the expected duration.

The leave must be with full pay at the regular rate set in the applicable collective bargaining agreement, on the firefighter’s normal pay schedule. For part-time firefighters, weekly pay is calculated from their normally scheduled hours or, for those without fixed hours, from their average weekly pay during the six-month period before the leave begins. The section applies to an active firefighting member with at least 1,250 hours of service with the department in the 12-month period before the leave starts.

Section 3270 also requires all benefits, including retirement contributions, seniority, promotional eligibility, and step increases, to continue to accrue as if the firefighter were working. The department must maintain group health coverage at the same level, and it may not require the firefighter to exhaust paid sick, vacation, or compensatory leave first. The paid leave runs concurrently with job-protected leave under Government Code sections 12945 and 12940.

Covered Departments and Scope

Section 3270 applies to active firefighting members of a fire department of a city, county, city and county, district, or other public or municipal corporation or political subdivision; a fire department of the California State University; the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection; and a county forestry or firefighting department or unit. A fire department of the University of California is requested, not required, to comply.

A firefighter returning from the leave must be restored to their prior position or one of equivalent rank, pay, schedule, station assignment, and promotional trajectory. The section does not preempt or limit any collective bargaining agreement or state or local law providing greater rights, and a department may count certain other qualifying paid benefits toward these requirements so long as the firefighter receives full pay without reducing vacation, sick, or other leave balances.