Work · Paid sick leave
Paid Sick Leave Law in Ohio
Whether an employer in Ohio must provide paid sick leave, how much you accrue, who is covered, and whether a city ordinance fills the gap where the state has no mandate. Cited to the statute.
What the paid sick leave law requires in Ohio
Who must provide it, how leave accrues and caps, and the workers the rule does not reach.
Paid-sick-leave law changes quickly across the country, though Ohio has both declined to mandate it and, through ORC 4113.85, foreclosed local ordinances for private employers. Confirm the current status of Section 4113.85 and any new legislation before relying on the absence of a rule.
| What the law requires | What it means |
|---|---|
| No private-sector requirement | No Ohio statute requires a private employer to provide paid sick leave, and the Revised Code sets no accrual rate or cap for private workers. Whether to offer sick pay, and on what terms, is left to the employer. In Ohio, private-sector sick leave is a matter of company policy, not state law. |
| The subject is exclusively employer policy | ORC 4113.85(B)(9) declares that whether an employer provides fringe benefits, and the type and amount, is exclusively the result of an employer’s policy, an agreement, a contract, or a collective bargaining agreement. ORC 4113.85(A)(1)(c) defines fringe benefit to include sick pay. |
| That framing shuts out local ordinances | By declaring the subject exclusively a matter of employer policy, the General Assembly occupied the field and left a municipal paid-leave ordinance with nothing to regulate. Read with the fringe-benefit definition, sick pay sits squarely inside the preempted zone. |
| Where it does not apply | What it means |
|---|---|
| Public employers have their own rule | ORC 124.38 gives many public employees 4.6 hours of paid sick leave for each completed 80 hours of service, cumulative without limit, usable for personal illness, injury, or illness in the immediate family. This entitlement is public sector only and does not reach private employers. |
| Cities keep hours-of-operation power | ORC 4113.85(D) preserves a political subdivision’s authority to adopt an ordinance limiting the hours an employer operates. That power is separate from benefits and does not let a city require paid sick leave. |
| Express state or federal law still controls | The preemption opens with the words except as otherwise expressly provided in state or federal law, so a specific statute such as the federal Family and Medical Leave Act or Ohio’s public-employee rule still operates on its own terms. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps around sick leave in Ohio. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Read the employer policy
Because state law is silent for private employers, your paid sick leave in Ohio comes from the company policy. Check the handbook or offer letter for accrual, carryover, and payout terms.
- Do not expect a local ordinance
An Ohio city cannot require private employers to provide paid sick leave, because state law makes the subject exclusively a matter of employer policy. If someone points you to a local mandate, confirm it applies to private employers and not just government workers.
- Use federal unpaid leave if eligible
If you and your employer are covered by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, you may take job-protected but unpaid leave for a serious health condition. That is separate from any paid policy.
- Check other states if you work across lines
If you sometimes work in a state that requires paid sick leave, that state rule may reach your hours there even though your employer is in Ohio. Where the work happens can matter.
If you were denied leave the law provides, the state labor department takes complaints and can explain the accrual rules and any penalty. Where the state has no mandate, check your city.
→ Ohio Department of CommerceThis is general legal information, not legal advice. Accrual, caps, and city ordinances turn on employer size and location, so confirm your situation against the statute.
What workers in Ohio get wrong about paid sick leave
Ohio does not require private employers to provide paid sick leave, and it also blocks its cities from creating a requirement. No Ohio statute sets an accrual rate or a cap for private-sector sick pay, so whether a worker has any paid sick leave depends on the employer’s own policy or a union contract. Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.85(B)(9) then declares that whether an employer provides fringe benefits, and the type and amount, is exclusively the result of an employer’s policy or agreement, and § 4113.85(A)(1)(c) defines fringe benefit to include sick pay. By occupying the field this way, the General Assembly left a municipal paid-leave ordinance with nothing to regulate. The only Ohio sick-leave entitlement written into statute is ORC 124.38, which gives many public employees 4.6 hours per 80 hours of service and does not reach private employers. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act still provides job-protected leave to eligible workers, but it is unpaid. So in Ohio, paid sick leave is a choice an employer makes, not a rule the state or a city imposes.
Common questions
Does Ohio require paid sick leave?
No. Ohio has no state law requiring a private employer to provide paid sick leave. Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.85 makes the subject exclusively a matter of the employer’s own policy or agreement.
How much sick leave do you get in Ohio?
For private workers, whatever the employer chooses to offer. State law sets no minimum, accrual rate, or cap for the private sector. Many public employees earn 4.6 hours per 80 hours of service under ORC 124.38.
Can an Ohio city require paid sick leave?
No. Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.85 makes fringe benefits, including sick pay, exclusively a matter of employer policy, which leaves a city ordinance with nothing to regulate. A local paid-sick-leave mandate for private employers is foreclosed.
Is there any leave Ohio employers must provide?
Covered employers must provide job-protected leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, but that leave is unpaid. Ohio itself does not require any paid sick leave for private-sector workers.
What if I work in Ohio for a company based elsewhere?
Your Ohio hours are generally governed by Ohio law, which has no mandate. But if you also work in a state that requires paid sick leave, that state rule can apply to the hours worked there.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.