Parental leave is a common type of leave for employees, often representing a notable change in their lives. It’s also a rapidly growing area of leave entitlement, with some interesting twists being added to newer leave laws. This leave varies significantly between territories across North America.
However, individual states may rely on a different approach as new leave laws are introduced. Colorado offers a good example. The Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) law aims to ensure that Colorado workers have access to paid leave, allowing them to care for themselves or their family when unforeseen circumstances prevent them from being at work. The FAMLI law is being expanded to provide employees with additional leave time beyond current FMLA standards.
It is worth noting that while this change in legislation is specific to Colorado, it sets a precedent for new legislation to emerge, expanding parent leave accommodations elsewhere.
New Amendments to Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI)
Parental leave is time off from work provided to employees who are parents, usually after the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. It gives working parents a chance to bond with their new child and to focus on the child’s health and welfare.
Under Colorado’s FAMLI law, covered Colorado employees may receive up to 12 weeks of leave per year for several reasons, including parental leave to bond with a new biological, adopted, or foster child. Employees experiencing pregnancy or childbirth complications may be entitled to an additional four weeks of leave for a total of 16 weeks per year.
Effective January 1, 2026, Colorado amended its FAMLI law to grant 12 additional weeks of parental leave to any covered employee whose child is receiving inpatient care in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In other words, the amendment provides workers with an additional 12 weeks of leave on top of the 12 weeks of leave they are already generally entitled to under FAMLI. This would allow an employee whose child is in the NICU to receive up to 24 weeks of paid FAMLI leave if the employee chooses to use 12 weeks of regular bonding/parental leave after taking 12 weeks of NICU leave.
A second less publicized amendment to paid FAMLI leave reduces the premiums collected from each employee’s wages to pay for wage replacement during leave from 0.9% to 0.88%, effective January 1, 2026. After 2026, the director of the Division of Family and Medical Leave Insurance will set the premium yearly, with a maximum potential premium rate of 1.2% of wages per employee.
How Employers Can Prepare for New Parental Leave Requirements
Colorado employers should prepare for these changes by revising their employee handbooks to cover parental leave for inpatient NCIU care under FAMLI and confirm that payroll taxes will be properly submitted in 2026.
Additionally, Colorado employers with employees in other states should closely watch for new parental leave entitlements in those states to avoid costly liability for non-compliance.
Ultimately, national employers navigating the complex leave requirements of multiple states can greatly benefit from automation by implementing workforce management software that simplifies and enhances compliance with federal, state, and local leave regulations.
Closing Thoughts
As employers prepare to adapt to these new requirements, it’s essential to revise company policies to simplify compliance regarding leave requests. Parental leave is highly significant to an employee’s experience, and expectations regarding this can have a substantial impact on their feelings toward their employer.
Leverage workforce compliance software to simply absence and leave compliance.
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