Workplace Protections

For workplaces with fewer than 25 employees, the protections only apply if you are the victim, not if your family member is a victim. The protections are also limited to taking time off to file for a restraining order or other acts to ensure your and your children’s safety.

However, if your employer has 25 or more employees, there are additional protections under the law. If you or your family member is a victim, you are allowed to take time off for the following additional reasons related to the qualifying act of violence:

1. to file for a restraining order or take other actions to protect the health or safety of your family member;
2. to seek any of the following for yourself or your family member:

• medical attention;
• services of a  domestic violence shelter or program, or a rape crisis center;
• psychological counseling or mental health services;
• civil or criminal legal services; or
• to participate in safety planning or take other actions to increase safety;

3. to relocate or start the process of doing so, which includes finding temporary or permanent housing, enrolling children in a new school or childcare, etc.;
4. to care for a family member who is recovering from injuries;
5. to prepare for, participate in, or attend a civil, administrative, or criminal legal proceeding; or
6. to seek, get, or provide childcare or care to a care-dependent adult if it is necessary to ensure the safety of the child or dependent adult.¹

Your employer can put a 12-week limit on the total amount of leave you can take if you are the victim. If your family member is the victim, not you, and s/he did not die from his/her injuries, the employer can limit the total amount of leave as follows:

• a five-day limit if you take time off for the reason explained above in #3; and
• a ten-day limit if you take time off for any of the other reasons listed above.²

¹ Cal. Gov. Code § 12945.8(b)
² Cal. Gov. Code § 12945.8(i)