Texas Paid Sick Leave Laws: Your Entitlements

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), codified at 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq., is the primary federal law addressing leave for serious health conditions. The FMLA covers employers with 50 or more employees within 75 miles of a work location and requires them to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per 12-month period for a serious health condition of the employee or a family member, childbirth, or bonding with a newborn. The leave must be maintained as continuous health insurance coverage, and the employee must be restored to the same or an equivalent position upon return.

Under the FMLA, employees are entitled to unpaid leave but not paid leave. The law defines a serious health condition as an inpatient care stay or continuing treatment by a healthcare provider. The Department of Labor (DOL) enforces the FMLA and allows employees to file complaints with the DOL Wage and Hour Division. However, the FMLA provides no compensation during the leave period and does not create a right to paid sick days separate from accrued vacation or PTO.

For employers not covered by the FMLA (those with fewer than 50 employees, or government employers covered under different rules), federal law does not mandate paid or unpaid sick leave. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets minimum wage and overtime requirements but does not address sick leave. Thus, for most private sector employees in Texas, the availability of paid sick leave depends entirely on employer policy or state and local law.

Texas has enacted no state statute requiring private sector employers to provide paid sick leave. Texas Government Code does not contain a paid sick leave mandate. This means Texas employers are not statutorily required to offer paid sick leave, accrual, or carryover provisions under state law.

Texas law is significantly weaker than federal law in this area. While the FMLA (federal) provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave for serious health conditions at covered employers, Texas adds no additional protection or requirement for paid leave. An employer with 100 Texas employees is required by federal law (FMLA) to provide unpaid leave but is not required by Texas law to provide any paid sick leave. This creates a gap: employees may have unpaid leave rights but no guaranteed paid sick days.

However, Texas employees in certain cities are protected by local ordinances. The City of Dallas (Dallas City Code § 25-1-671) requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide at least one hour of paid sick leave per 30 hours worked, up to a minimum of 40 hours per year. Austin (Austin City Code § 25-8-681) requires employers with six or more employees to provide paid sick leave at a rate of one hour per 30 hours worked. These local laws supersede state law in their respective jurisdictions and create enforceable paid sick leave rights.

Outside Dallas and Austin, Texas employees have no state-mandated right to paid sick leave. Employers may voluntarily adopt paid sick leave policies, but doing so is a matter of employer choice, not legal obligation. When an employer does provide paid sick leave, the employer may set the terms, including accrual rates, carryover caps, and use restrictions, subject only to contract law and any local ordinance. Additionally, Texas is an at-will employment state, meaning employers may terminate employment for any reason not otherwise illegal. An employer may not, however, retaliate against an employee for exercising rights under the FMLA or a local paid sick leave ordinance.

Texas employers are not required to provide paid sick leave under state law, which represents a broad exception. Private sector employers with fewer than six employees are not covered by the Austin ordinance, and those with fewer than 15 employees are not covered by the Dallas ordinance, even in those cities. Employees excluded from FMLA protection include those at employers with fewer than 50 employees, those who have not worked for the employer for at least 12 months, those who have not worked at least 1,250 hours in the past 12 months, and those at worksites with fewer than 50 employees within 75 miles.

Employers may also exclude certain categories of employees from paid sick leave requirements under Dallas and Austin law. For example, employees represented by a collective bargaining agreement may be excluded if the agreement addresses paid leave separately. Independent contractors are not employees and are not covered by any paid sick leave requirement.

Texas employers may defend against a claim by demonstrating that the employee did not meet the requirements for paid sick leave under the applicable law (e.g., fewer than 1,250 hours worked for FMLA claims, or the employer had fewer than 15 employees for Dallas claims). Additionally, if an employer has a written policy providing paid sick leave that meets or exceeds the statutory requirement, compliance with that policy is a defense. Employers may also limit the use of paid sick leave to specific purposes (such as the employee's own serious health condition) under Dallas and Austin law, provided the policy is consistently applied and does not discriminate.

Step 1: Document the violation. Keep a detailed record of all dates you requested paid sick leave, how the request was made (email, verbal, written), the reason provided, and the employer's response. Save copies of any written sick leave policy provided by the employer, your employee handbook, and any communications from the employer regarding leave or compensation. Document the hours you worked to support any claim that the employer failed to provide the required hours (one hour per 30 hours worked under Dallas or Austin law). If the employer denied your request without a valid reason, note the exact words and the context.

Step 2: File an internal complaint if possible. Provide written notice to your employer's HR department or manager, clearly stating that you believe your paid sick leave rights under Dallas City Code § 25-1-671, Austin City Code § 25-8-681, or the FMLA were violated. Include specific dates and hours affected. Request a written response and specify a deadline (e.g., 10 business days). Internal complaints are not legally required but create a documented record and may prompt corrective action. If you fear retaliation, consider consulting an employment attorney before filing an internal complaint.

Step 3: File a complaint with the appropriate agency. For Dallas employees, file with the City of Dallas Office of Compliance and Investigations (OCI). The complaint must be filed within three years of the violation. Visit the Dallas website at dallasgov.org or call (214) 670-3111 to locate the correct office. For Austin employees, file with the City of Austin Labor Standards office through the city website at austintexas.gov; complaints must be filed within three years. For FMLA violations, file with the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division at www.dol.gov/agencies/whd or by calling 1-866-4-USDOL (1-866-487-3635). The DOL complaint must typically be filed within two years of the violation (or three years if the employer's conduct was willful). Be prepared to provide your name, address, dates of employment, job title, employer name and address, specific dates of the alleged violation, hours worked, and wages paid.

Step 4: Expect the agency investigation process. For Dallas and Austin complaints, the city labor office will contact the employer and request records, including your employment file, timesheets, and the sick leave policy. You may be asked to provide a detailed statement and supporting documentation. The investigation typically takes 30–60 days. If the city finds a violation, the employer may be ordered to provide back pay and penalties. For FMLA complaints, the DOL Wage and Hour Division will investigate similarly and may conduct interviews with you, the employer, and coworkers. Investigations may take 60–120 days. The DOL may seek recovery of unpaid compensation, damages, and may refer the case for litigation if necessary.

Step 5: Consult an employment attorney if the agency does not resolve your complaint or if you face retaliation. An employment attorney can file a civil lawsuit in state court (for Dallas, Austin, or other state claims) or federal court (for FMLA claims). An attorney can also assess whether you have claims for wage and hour violations, discrimination, or retaliation. Many employment attorneys work on contingency (no upfront fee). Contact the State Bar of Texas at texasbar.com or call (800) 252-9690 for a referral.