10 Key Questions About Leave Laws in Delaware

July 1st 2025

Understanding leave laws is crucial for both employers and employees to ensure compliance and foster a positive work culture. This article answers ten key questions about leave laws in Delaware, from the basics of available leave types to the specifics of the state’s new paid leave program.

This Guide Covers

1. What are the leave laws in Delaware?

Leave laws in Delaware are a combination of federal mandates and state-specific regulations. The two major acts governing employee leave in Delaware include the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Healthy Delaware Families Act (HDFA).

The FMLA requires employers in Delaware to provide eligible employees with unpaid yet job-protected leave for various family and medical reasons without interrupting their group health insurance coverage.

Furthermore, the HDFA has created the Delaware Paid Leave insurance program, which requires employers to provide income-replacement benefits to their employees while they are on approved unpaid FMLA leave.

Delaware also offers additional leave provisions for state employees, such as bereavement and compassionate leaves. Certain exempt state employees also accrue annual and sick leaves.

Learn more about Delaware leave laws.

2. What are the different types of leave available in Delaware?

The different types of leave available to employees in Delaware include:

  • Family and Medical Leave: The federal FMLA provides eligible employees in Delaware with unpaid, job-protected leave for up to 12 workweeks in a 12-month period for childbirth, foster placement, and adoption, to care for themselves or a family member suffering from a serious mental or physical health condition, or for qualifying reasons related to a family member’s foreign military deployment. Eligible employees may also take up to 26 workweeks of leave in a 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember who is suffering from a serious injury or sickness.
  • Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML): The PFML, also known as Delaware Paid Leave, is an insurance program that complements the FMLA, requiring employers with ten or more workers to provide certain employees paid leave (with up to 80% of employee’s pay or a maximum of $900 per week) for absences related to parental, serious medical, or family caregiving reasons, or to support family in overseas military deployment. The length of paid leave coverage varies based on the reason for absence; however, the combined duration of this coverage cannot be more than 12 weeks in a 12-month period.
  • Jury Duty Leave: Delaware law mandates employers to provide employees with job-protected leave for jury duty, which means they cannot terminate, suspend, or demote an employee for serving as a juror. It is at the discretion of the employer to provide paid or unpaid jury duty leave to an employee. However, eligible employees of executive branch agencies receive paid time off to serve on a jury.
  • Military Leave: State employees, who are called to or voluntarily enter the armed forces of the United States or the State National Guard, when in continuous active service, receive military leave until their service completes or up to a maximum of five years. After their service ends, they are reinstated to their previous job position. Additionally, if the employee is a member of the Delaware National Guard or a U.S. military reserve organization and is ordered to active duty for a mission, they continue to receive their regular state wages for the initial period of military service, minus any military pay they receive.
  • Donation Leave: Delaware state employees (included in a certain collective bargaining unit) receive up to seven days of leave to serve as a bone marrow donor and up to 30 days of leave to serve as an organ donor in any calendar year. This leave is without loss or reduction of pay.
  • Bereavement Leave: State employees can receive up to five days of paid leave for miscarriage, stillbirth, or other pregnancy-related loss they suffer.
  • Compassionate Leave: Delaware state employees working 30+ hours per week are allowed 37.5 hours (for those on a 37.5-hour weekly schedule) or 40 hours (for those on a 40-hour weekly schedule) of paid leave when their immediate family member passes away. Part-time state employees receive this leave on a pro-rata basis.
  • Emergency Responder Leave: According to Delaware’s Volunteer Emergency Responders Job Protection Act, employers with ten or more employees cannot fire,  demote, or discipline specified employees who are volunteers emergency responders for taking leave to respond to a Governor-declared state of emergency lasting up to seven consecutive days or a President-declared national emergency lasting up to 14 consecutive days. This leave can also be used by employees to recover from injuries sustained when acting as a volunteer emergency responder. The employer may deduct the employee’s wages for any time spent away from work when taking this leave.
  • Sick Leave: Certain full-time exempt state employees in Delaware accrue sick leave at the rate of 9.5 hours for each completed calendar month of state service. Sick leave for such employees accrues without limit; however, only up to 675 hours of unused sick leave can be cashed out upon separation from state service.
  • Annual Leave: In Delaware, certain full-time exempt state employees accrue annual leave at the rate of 13.25 hours for each completed calendar month of service. Employees can only carry over up to twice the amount of accrued annual leave into a new calendar year. However, they can temporarily exceed this amount during the year.
  • Floating Holidays: At the beginning of each calendar year, state agency employees receive two paid floating holidays that can be taken within that calendar year. Employees hired after April 30 receive fewer or no floating holidays for that year based on their hire date. Unused floating holidays cannot be carried over to the next calendar year.
  • Holidays: Delaware observes 11 legal public holidays per year. During the Election year, there is an off for the Election Day. Sussex County also observes Return Day holiday on the second day after the General Election during an election year. Here is the list of official state holidays for 2025:

list of official state holidays in Delaware for 2025

3. How long is a leave of absence in Delaware?

The duration of leave in Delaware depends on the specific type of leave.

  • Family and Medical Leave: Up to 12 workweeks of FMLA leave in a 12-month period for qualifying reasons and up to 26 workweeks of FMLA leave in a 12-month period to care for a servicemember.
  • Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML): Up to 12 weeks of total paid combined leave per year.
  • Jury Duty Leave: For the duration of jury service.
  • Military Leave: For the entire period of the employee’s military service — until their service ends or up to five years.
  • Donation Leave: Up to seven days of paid leave to serve as a bone marrow donor and up to 30 days of paid leave to serve as an organ donor in any calendar year.
  • Bereavement Leave: A maximum of five days of paid leave. 
  • Compassionate Leave: 37.5 hours of leave for state employees who work a 37.5-hour weekly schedule and 40 hours of leave for those who work a 40-hour weekly schedule. Duration is prorated for part-time state employees.
  • Emergency Responder Leave: Up to seven consecutive days of leave for responding to a Governor-declared state of emergency and up to 14 consecutive days of leave for responding to a President-declared national emergency.
  • Sick Leave: 9.5 hours of accrued leave for each completed calendar month of service for certain state employees.
  • Annual Leave: 13.25 hours of accrued leave for each completed calendar month of service for certain state employees.
  • Floating Holidays: Up to two floating holidays per calendar year, based on the employee’s date of hiring, to be taken in the same year. Leave hours depend on the employee’s work schedule 一 those who work a 37.5-hour schedule receive 7.5 hours off for each floating holiday, while those on a 40-hour schedule receive eight hours off for each floating holiday. Permanent part-time employees also receive floating holidays on a pro-rata basis depending on the percentage of hours worked.
  • Holidays: 11 legal holidays and the day of the General Election (during an election year). Sussex County observes another legal holiday for Return Day, which is the second day after the General Election, during an election year.

4. Are part-time employees entitled to leave in Delaware?

Yes, part-time employees are entitled to a few types of leave in Delaware.

Part-time state employees in Delaware are entitled to compassionate leave on a pro-rata basis and up to five days of paid bereavement leave.

Permanent part-time state employees also receive paid floating holidays on a pro-rata basis,  determined by the percentage of their full-time hours.

Part-time employees may also be eligible for PMFL coverage with elements that may impact this being the number of weekly hours worked, the existence of waivers, and employment duration as per PMFL requirements.

Certain part-time employees of executive branch agencies may receive additional leave types, including paid volunteer leave and annual leave.

Know your rights as an hourly employee in Delaware.

5. Do employees get paid while on leave in Delaware?

Yes, employees in Delaware get paid while on certain types of leave.

Eligible employees can receive up to 80% of their usual wages — capped at $900 per week — when on approved FMLA leave under the Delaware Paid Leave insurance program. 

State employees, who are members of the Delaware National Guard or a U.S. military reserve organization and are called to active duty on a mission, continue to receive their usual state wages for the initial period of military service minus any military compensation they receive while they are on military leave.

Additionally, state employees in Delaware are paid while on leave for floating holidays, bereavement leave, compassionate leave, and organ and bone marrow donation leave.

Employees of state executive branch agencies also get paid while on public holidays, annual leave, sick leave, paid parental leave, jury duty leave, and paid volunteer leave, upon meeting the eligibility requirements.

6. What happens to employee benefits while they’re on leave in Delaware?

Some employees in Delaware can continue to receive health insurance coverage and accrue specific types of leave while on leave.

When an employee is on approved FMLA leave, they continue to receive group health plan benefits as they would without taking leave. Eligible employees can also receive income-replacement benefits under the Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) insurance program while they are on FMLA leave.

State employees, who are members of the Delaware National Guard or a U.S. military reserve organization, and are called to active duty for a mission, continue to receive state group health insurance plan benefits while on military leave (for up to two years), if they keep paying their share of premiums.

For eligible employees of state executive branch agencies, annual and sick leave accruals continue while they are on leave without pay for up to 30 days or on parental leave. When on parental leave, such employees also receive service credit and retirement contributions.

7. Can unused leave be carried over to the next year in Delaware?

Certain full-time exempt state employees in Delaware can carry over annual leave to the next calendar year. The total annual leave carried over to the next year may not exceed twice the employee’s annual accrual rate.

However, within the same year, accruals may exceed twice the annual accrual, but any excess beyond the carryover limit must be used before the end of the year.

8. Can you get fired while on leave in Delaware?

Delaware is an “at-will” employment state, which means an employer can terminate an employee for any lawful reason.

There are a few exceptions: An employer cannot fire an employee for requesting or taking legally job-protected leaves like FMLA leave, military leave, jury duty leave, or emergency responder leave.

However, employers may still terminate an employee for a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason that is genuinely not related to the leave, including serious misconduct, attendance issues, criminal activity, or discriminatory behavior on the part of the employee.

Explore the main termination laws in Delaware in detail.

9. What can you do if your leave rights get violated in Delaware?

If an employee’s leave rights have been violated in Delaware, they can contact the relevant government authorities for investigation and legal action.

For example, complaints against employer retaliation, discrimination, and harassment, as well as employer fraud in the state’s Paid Leave Program, can be reported to the Delaware Department of Labor through the Delaware LaborFirst system.

In case of violations, the employer may be subject to a civil penalty of $1,000-$5,000 for each violation against each employee.

10. What is the new law for FMLA in Delaware?

Delaware introduced a new Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) insurance program, also known as the Delaware Paid Leave program. The program, which was signed into law on May 11, 2022, under the Healthy Delaware Families Act, will come into full effect on January 1, 2026.

It provides employees with income-replacement benefits for a specific time when they take unpaid leave under the FMLA.

Most businesses in Delaware need to participate in the Delaware Paid Leave program, with a few exceptions. These include federal agencies such as the railroad industry, armed forces, and tribal governments, seasonal establishments under certain conditions, businesses with employees that don’t primarily work in Delaware, and employers with fewer than ten PFML-eligible workers.

To be eligible for benefits under the PFML program, employees must meet certain eligibility criteria. These include — but are not limited to — being employed for a covered Delaware-based employer for at least 12 months, having worked at least 1,250 hours with said employer during the past 12 months, and having worked at least 60% of their work hours physically in Delaware each calendar quarter.

Covered employees can get up to 80% of their wages (maximum $900 per week) as PFML coverage for up to 12 weeks in a year to care for a new child, or six weeks in a 24-month period to care for a seriously ill family member, for their own serious injury or illness, or to support a family member during their military deployment.

However, they can only leverage these benefits for a maximum of 12 weeks of combined leave per year.

This program will be funded with contributions from both employers and employees. Employee contributions will be less than 1% of an employee’s weekly salary; however, employers can mandate employees to pay up to half of the contribution cost.

Important Cautionary Note

This content is provided for informational purposes only. While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information presented, we cannot guarantee that it is free of errors or omissions. Users are advised to independently verify any critical information and should not solely rely on the content provided.