As stated in earlier articles, Arizona laws do not require employers to provide vacation benefits, either paid or unpaid, or sick leave benefits, either paid or unpaid. Arizona laws also do not required employers to provide employees with severance pay. You may be surprised to learn that Arizona law also does not require employers to provide employees with either paid or unpaid holiday leave. Further, in Arizona, an employer can require an employee to work holidays without paying “premium” pay, such as one-and-a-half times the regular rate of pay, unless the employee is non-exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act, and such time worked qualifies the employee for overtime under standard overtime laws. All that said, if an employer chooses to provide either paid or unpaid vacation benefits, sick leave benefits, severance pay or holiday leave, it must comply with the terms of its established policy or employment contract, and upon cessation of employment timely pay earned wages.
If you have any questions regarding these laws or your company’s policies or benefits, it is important to discuss them with a qualified employment lawyer. Faulkner Law Offices, PLLC has more than three (3) decades of combined experience counseling employees and managers in all aspects of employment law. We welcome the opportunity to assist you today.