The governor of Rhode Island has signed into law amendments to the Temporary Caregiver Insurance (TCI) law that will increase the amount of leave benefits available to employees beginning Jan. 1, 2025.
Currently, eligible employees in Rhode Island can take six weeks of leave under TCI to care for a newborn, or newly adopted child, or to care for a family member with a serious health condition. As of Jan. 1, 2025, employees will be entitled to seven weeks of leave, which will increase to eight weeks as of Jan. 1, 2026.
Initially enacted in 2014, TCI provides partial wage replacement and job protection for eligible Rhode Island employees. The wage replacement benefits are fully funded by employee payroll deductions. The amendments continue to expand the length of leave available to employees under TCI after prior amendments in 2022 and 2023 gradually expanded TCI leave from four weeks to the current six weeks.
Rhode Island also increased the minimum dependent allowance from $10.00 per week to $20.00 per week effective Jan. 1, 2025. Employees with dependents are entitled to the greater of the minimum dependent allowance or 7% of their weekly benefit amount for each dependent.
In Rhode Island, employees receiving TCI while out on leave cannot continue to work and take leave on an intermittent basis, but they must remain out on leave for the entire duration of the leave period to collect benefits.
Employees seeking to take leave must notify their employers in writing at least 30 days prior to the start of the leave, barring unforeseen circumstances. Employers may receive requests for information from the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training regarding employees who have applied for leave, but all other information regarding the leave is confidential.
Employees returning from TCI leave are entitled to return to a comparable position with the equivalent seniority, status, employment benefits, pay, and other terms and conditions, including fringe benefits.
