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October 13, 2025
Changes to Paid Leave
Maryland has delayed implementation of its paid family and medical leave program once more. The Paid Family Leave Law (program) provides up to 12 weeks of paid leave to covered employees for a covered reason. See 2025 Md. HB 102. The main provisions of the program remain the same, but House Bill 102 revised some of its technical aspects, including its implementation date. Specifically, the date on which contributions to the program must begin has been changed FROM July 1, 2025 TO January 1, 2027. In addition, the date on which benefits under the program will be available has been changed FROM July 1, 2026 TO sometime between January 1, 2027 and January 3, 2028.
Maryland employers should update their Human Resources/Payroll systems to align with the new deadlines and should provide notice to employees of the changes.
Changes to Unpaid Leave
Maryland has exempted employers from the state’s unpaid parental leave requirements if they are covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for the applicable year. See 2025 Md. SB 785. The Maryland Parental Leave Act requires that employers who employ 15 to 49 employees for at least 20 workweeks in the preceding or current calendar year provide up to six weeks of unpaid parental leave to covered employees. The FMLA, which provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to covered employees for a covered reason, applies to employers with at least 50 employees in at least 20 workweeks during the preceding or current calendar year. Because both laws look at the preceding AND the current calendar year, some employers found themselves covered by both the state and federal law for the same year. Senate Bill 785 addresses this overlap by exempting from the state law requirements any employer who is covered the FMLA for the current calendar year.
Maryland employers should update their leave of absence policies and practices to comply with the new law and also should ensure that their personnel handling leaves of absence are trained on it.
More Protections for Service Members
Maryland revised its Employment and Insurance Equality for Service Members Act (Act) to amend definitions related to the military and to expand its application of hiring preference laws and leave laws to eligible veterans, employees who are members of the uniformed services, and military families. See 2025 Md. HB 895. Specifically, the Act’s protections now apply to all uniformed services, rather than only the armed forces and the National Guard. New protections under the Act include: (1) hiring preferences for (a) eligible veterans; (b) the spouse of an eligible veteran who has a service-connected disability; (c) the spouse of an eligible active service member; or (d) the surviving spouse of a deceased eligible veteran; and (2) leave from work on the day that an employee’s immediate family member is leaving for, or returning from, active duty outside of the United States as a member of the uniformed services.
Maryland employers should update their leave of absence policies and practices to comply with the amended law and also should ensure that their hiring personnel are aware of the allowable preferences.
The author of this article, Patricia Tsipras, is a member of the Bar of Pennsylvania. This article is designed to provide one perspective regarding recent legal developments, and is not intended to serve as legal advice in Pennsylvania, Maryland, or any other jurisdiction, nor does it establish an attorney-client relationship with any reader of the article where one does not exist. Always consult an attorney with specific legal issues.
