
A Knot of Benefits
In part due to the COVID-19 pandemic and in part due to a political push to provide enhanced minimum benefits for workers, the federal government, the Colorado legislature, and, most recently, Colorado voters have approved multiple leave benefit laws that apply to the majority of Colorado employees. While the many different programs tie together to form a safety net for employees, the overlapping benefits pose a complex knot for employers to navigate. The most recent of these programs is the Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program takes effect in January 2023.
Proposition 118
Joining just a handful of other states, Colorado voters approved Proposition 118 in November 2020 creating a state-run insurance program to provide paid leave when Colorado employees to take leave for eligible reasons. Employers and their employees will begin paying into the insurance program on January 1, 2023, and benefits will be available to workers starting in January 2024.