I’ve dedicated a lot of my reports to Delaware’s new Paid Family Medical Leave law because it is one of the biggest state government initiatives to be brought forth in a very long time and it will impact almost all our members’ businesses.

Hopefully, you know the Director of the Delaware Department of Labor Paid Leave Office and the DOL Deputy Secretary have been in to DCA to meet with our members a number of times. DCA has advocated for our members and created opportunities for them to present the real-world challenges that we need DOL to work through to make the law manageable.

I’ve also tried to make sure our members are informed in a timely manner of the status of the law’s implementation. The implementation of the law will occur over the next couple of years but there is one important window of time occurring now that has the ability to impact Delaware companies, typically larger companies, by recognizing some existing private insurance plans as meeting the requirements of the law.

The following is a communication from the consultant working for the Department of Paid Leave regarding a recently opened portal for those companies who believe they may be in compliance via the private insurance option.

Delaware Department of Labor Grandfathering/Parental Leave Duration Portal

Beginning on Oct. 1, the Delaware Department of Labor’s Division of Paid Leave (DPL) will open a Grandfathering/Parental Leave Duration Portal for Delaware employers seeking exemption from immediately joining the state’s plan.

All employers seeking exemption should submit an application to the portal prior to Dec. 31, 2023, when the portal will close.

To be eligible for consideration, employers must offer a private plan that is comparable to the state’s plan. Approved existing plans will be “grandfathered in” for the first five years of the program. For an existing plan to be eligible:

1. It must have been written and in place before Delaware Paid Leave was signed into law (May 2022).
2. It cannot cost workers more than what Delaware Paid Leave allows.
3. Benefits must be comparable to the state’s plan. 

A comparable plan will be within 10% of the minimum requirements of the Delaware Paid Leave program. Small employers with 10 to 24 employees will be able to notify DPL if they wish to reduce their employees’ maximum paid leave duration — from the standard 12 weeks to as low as six weeks — for the first five years of the program.

Please keep in mind that a call center has officially opened to assist employers with questions about having a plan grandfathered in. Employers can call 302-761-8375.

We are continuing to work on behalf of our Allied Division members to have signatories to Collective Bargaining Agreements be recognized as being in compliance in a manner similar to the private plan compliance currently allowed under the law. DCA will continue to voice and represent the issues of all of our members as the state moves forward in its implementation of this substantial change in public policy.