Connecticut Paid Family
and Medical Leave Act
(CT PFML)
Connecticut Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (CT PFML) offers wage replacement benefits if an employee is sick or hurt and cannot work. PFML applies to family-related matters, such as bonding with a new child or caring for a family member with a serious health condition and can also be used to address a family member’s military duty, or for safety concerns.
Employers can participate in the state-run program (Connecticut Paid Family and Medical Leave), or they can self-insure or fully insure a private plan.
MetLife offers self-insured and fully insured CT PFML plans.
Benefit Overview
Mandated Coverage & Employee Eligibility
HintLeave Reason, Duration, Job Protection
HintCost of Coverage and Contributions
HintBenefit Payments
HintEmployers are required to offer CT PFML if they have a minimum of 1 or more employees working in the state. Employers can offer CT PFML either through the state-run program, or they can self-insure or fully insure a private plan.
All employees working for a covered employer are eligible for CT PFML benefits if they have earned at least $2,325 or more from working in Connecticut in the first four of the last five finished calendar quarters before the benefit year starts. An employee must be currently employed or employed in the 12 weeks before the leave. If an employee is a Connecticut resident, they can enroll in the program even if they are self-employed or a sole proprietor.
Eligible employees can receive part of their pay, but no job protection, if they need to take time off for certain reasons. However, job protection may be provided through other federal or state laws such as the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
Medical Leave can be taken for up to 12 weeks to:
- address a personal serious health condition or injury, including organ or bone marrow donations (an extra 2 weeks for qualifying pregnancy or childbirth complications)
Family Leave can be taken for up to 12 weeks to:
- bond with a new child
- care for a family member with a serious health condition
- assist while loved ones are on overseas military deployment
Safe Leave can be taken for up to 12 days to:
- to address safety concerns, such as domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault
Leave can be taken all at once, or intermittent at the lowest increment an employer can track, for leaves based on serious health conditions. An employee may need to provide proof of the need for an intermittent leave.
Beginning January 1, 2025, the maximum employee contribution is $880.50, or 0.5% of the Federal Social Security Wage Cap ($176,100).
Private plan premiums may differ, however, employee max contributions for a private plan cannot be more than what they would pay for the state-run program. Employers fund the balance of the premium for private plans.
Employers are not required to contribute to the state-run program as it is 100% employee paid.
Please visit the state program’s website for the latest state rates and additional state plan information.
The benefit amount an employee can receive depends on the employee’s average weekly pay compared to the Connecticut minimum wage, times 40 hours.
Beginning January 1, 2025, the maximum weekly benefit amount is $981, or 60 times the state minimum wage (or $16.35 per hour).
- If an employee’s wages are less than or equal to the CT minimum wage multiplied by 40 (or $654.00), the employee’s weekly benefit rate under the CT PFML will be 95% of their average weekly wage.
- If the employee’s weekly pay is more than 40 times the Connecticut minimum wage (or $654.00), the employee will receive 95% of 40 times the minimum wage, plus 60% of the amount they make over 40 times the minimum wage.
Key Dates
- Maximum weekly benefit of $981 is effective
- Minimum wage of $16.35 per hour is effective
Applying for a MetLife Private Plan & Employer Requirements
To obtain a proposal from MetLife, you or your broker must create a census of your eligible Connecticut workforce and send it to MetLife.
All employees on the payroll in Connecticut will be asked to vote for your private plan.
MetLife offers self-insured and fully insured CT PFML plans that have been approved by the state.
If fully insured, MetLife will issue a state approved CT PFML policy.
If self-insured, you will need to work with your own employment counsel to define your CT PFML plan to submit to the state for approval.
You are required to conduct a vote for all eligible employees, including those on leave, and the vote must result in 50% +1 of all eligible employees in favor of the private plan in order to obtain state approval.
The vote cannot be taken more than 6 months prior to the effective date of the private plan, including for plan renewals. Online voting is recommended by the state. The method of voting must be anonymous and capable of independent, after-the-fact verification. Anonymous voting means that neither the management nor other employees can determine how any individual employee voted.
Employers with only one employee in Connecticut must still hold a vote; please use the state’s “Contact Us” feature to obtain approval for a non-anonymous vote.
Special Instructions for employers with multiple locations/subsidiaries with unique FEINs: The State of Connecticut considers an entity with its own FEIN to be an employer, and each employer must have a majority of their employees vote in favor of a private plan. This means that each location must have a 50%+1 vote. Each location must also be registered with the state and submit an application for private plan. These multiple entities will be covered under a single MetLife policy, and this policy can be used for each location’s filing.
To prepare for the vote, create an information packet for employees that includes:
- A cover letter and sample ballot
- Policy documentation, from MetLife
- Plain Language Guide
- Voting process and dates
Employees will need at least two weeks to review the materials before the vote is conducted. You should share this information the same way you share other legally required notices, open enrollment materials, etc.
Once your employees have had a chance to vote, the results must be published for your employees. For your convenience here is a sample letter you may use to compile your vote results.
You will need to register with the state for tax exemption for both fully insured and self-insured plans. This is where you will also apply for your private plan. Please be sure to have the following information when registering.
If applying with a fully insured MetLife CT PFML private plan, you will need:
- Plain language guide
- Policy documentation provided by MetLife
- Results of the employee vote
If applying with a MetLife CT PFML self-insured private plan, you will need:
- Plain language guide
- Self-Insured Plan Template
- Declaration of Insurance showing self-insured plan
- Surety bond equal to the estimated total yearly contributions that would otherwise be owed by your employees (Sample surety bond form)
- Results of the employee vote
Note:
- If you are currently covered for CT PFML under the Connecticut state plan, the state will only allow an employer to transfer out of the state plan on a "future" quarterly basis (1/1, 4/1, 7/1 or 10/1).
- If you currently have an insured CT PFML plan with an insurance carrier, you can change private insurance carriers at any time. You will need to give MetLife your state approved private plan showing coverage, and you will need to conduct a new employee vote. Changing carriers is considered a material change.
- Deadlines for changing carriers is 30 days prior to the start of a new quarter.
- If changing from private plan to private plan, the state needs a statement confirming the date the prior carrier will end coverage and the effective date the new carrier is planning to take over. Without this confirmation, the state will transfer on the same quarterly schedule as if they were the prior administrator.
The state will send you confirmation of your private plan approval which will include the effective date of the tax exemption. CT PFML private plan tax exemptions will be effective for 3 years unless the employer makes a material change, in which they will need to conduct a new employee vote and resubmit to the state for a new approval.
Employers are required by law to provide the Notice of Employee Rights Under CT FMLA and CT Paid Leave upon initial hire and annually thereafter.
Reporting requirements
The state requires annual reporting of all private plans by May 1 of each year. MetLife will provide you with claim details to help complete your reporting obligations.
If you have a self-insured private plan, you may want to review the plan with your employment attorney to ensure it is compliant with the current laws and regulations. CT PFML self-insured plan applications will need to include an updated Surety bond.
Renewing your MetLife private plan
The CT PFML approval is good for a three-year period and the private plan renewal process is the same as your initial private plan application, which means, a new employee vote must be conducted with all eligible employees.
Taking a Leave
Filing for Benefits with MetLife
HintSupporting Claim Documentation
HintCoordination of Benefits
HintStep 1: An employee should notify an employer of the need for a leave as soon as possible.
Step 2: An employee should file a claim up to 30 days in advance of the leave. If the leave is unforeseeable, claims may be submitted up to 30 days after the leave has begun.
Step 3: MetLife will gather any additional necessary information from the employee and make a decision within 14 days or the first day of leave, whichever is later.
Step 4: The employee will receive their first benefit payment within two weeks of claim approval.
Step 5: If an employee’s claim is denied, an employee may appeal the claim first with MetLife and if denied again the employee may submit an appeal to the state.
Employees must provide specific documents for each claim. It is important to submit paperwork to the doctor as soon as possible. It might take the doctor’s office two weeks or more to complete the paperwork. In some cases, a statement confirming the relationship between the employee and the family member may also be requested.
For an employee's own serious health condition (when an employee is sick or hurt and cannot work for an extended period), or for organ or bone marrow donation:
- Certification of a Serious Health Condition form filled out by an employee and their healthcare provider, or
- A doctor’s note or Attending Physician Statement (APS) that includes the same information as the Certification of Serious Health Condition form and/or any other reasonable information or documentation necessary to adjudicate the claim.
For child bonding for a newborn:
- A copy of the child’s birth certificate, or
- A statement from the child’s healthcare provider stating child’s date of birth, or
- A statement from the mother’s healthcare provider stating child’s date of birth
For child bonding for adoption or foster care placement:
- A copy of adoption papers or court documents finalizing the adoption, that includes child's date of birth and adoption date, or
- Documentation from the child’s healthcare provider, or
- Foster/adoption agency paperwork containing adoption or placement
- If an employee is not the parent named in the court documents (in loco parentis), the employee may also be asked to provide proof verifying your relationship to the in loco parentis named in the court documentation. This could be a marriage certificate, civil union papers, or something showing the employee is in a domestic partnership.
For leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition, including medical events related to pregnancy or childbirth:
- Certification of a Serious Health Condition form filled out by you and your family member’s healthcare provider, or
- A doctor’s note or APS that includes the same information as the Certification of Serious Health Condition form
For qualifying military exigency needs, you will need to verify your family member’s service:
- Your covered family member’s active-duty orders, or
- Letter from the military unit documenting impending call or order to covered duty, or
- Documentation of military leave signed by the approval authority for the military member’s rest and recuperation
- If leave is requested to meet with a third party, such as a school official, counselor, or attorney, you must provide documentation of the meeting that includes:
- The name, address, and contact information of the individual or entity with whom you are meeting
- A description of the meeting
For caring for a family member who is a covered service member:
- Certification of a Disability/Serious Health Condition form filled out by the service member’s healthcare provider, or
- A doctor’s note or APS that includes the same information as the Certification of Serious Health Condition form
- An alternative form of certification can be an Invitational Travel Order (ITO) or Invitational Travel Authorization (ITA) issued by the Department of Defense to any family member to join an injured or ill service member at their bedside
Employees may be eligible for more than one leave.
CT PFML and Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) benefits can and should be used at the same time, when applicable. Employers may require (or allow) an employee to use their accrued time off. Employers may also require an employee to use PML benefits and short-term or long-term disability benefits at the same time. Total compensation may not be more than 100% of an employee's regular pay.
MetLife’s claims team will reach out to the employer to coordinate dates of the company leave that directly overlap with the state leave.
MetLife representatives can help review employer paid benefits that may overlap with the state leave. They can help document overlaps and preferred contact and action when the overlap happens.
Note: There may be additional leaves that MetLife does not administer. Employers may be responsible for providing additional leaves for their employees. Employers should consult their own employment attorneys.
Need more information?
FAQs
A spouse or domestic partner, child, parent or legal guardian, sibling, grandchild, grandparent, spouse’s grandparent, child-in-law, or an individual who has a relationship with the employee that creates an expectation and reliance on the employee’s care for them, regardless of whether they reside together.
As of November 21, 2024