In the United States, the majority of states—including Alaska—don’t have paid family leave (PFL) programs. PFL, also sometimes called paid family and medical leave (PFML), supports employees who need time off work to bond with a new child or care for an ill or injured loved one.
If you employ people in Alaska, you’re still responsible for adhering to federal leave laws. Our guide explains what federal leave offers, how your business can comply with the law, and what you should know about creating your own paid leave policy.
Alaska doesn’t have paid family leave
Alaska is one of 36 states that doesn’t have a state-mandated PFL program. As of May 2026, the states that have enacted paid family leave programs include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Washington.
Most programs offer employees anywhere from two to six months off to manage personal or family-related matters, with weekly benefit payments ranging from 50-100% of an employee’s regular salary.
However, in Alaska, employees can only take personal or family leave if they:
Qualify for paid leave under their employer’s insurance plan
Qualify for unpaid federal leave
Qualify for unpaid state leave as a state/public sector employee
Have enough accrued paid sick leave
What is the Alaska Family Leave Act?
The Alaska Family Leave Act (AFLA)—which has been in effect since 1992—gives eligible state and public sector employees unpaid, job-protected leave for one of two main reasons:
A serious medical condition: Up to 18 weeks of paid, job-protected leave in a 24-month period
Pregnancy, childbirth, or adoption: Up to 18 weeks in a 12-month period
To qualify for leave, employees need to:
Have been employed by the state for at least 35 hours a week for at least six consecutive months (or at least 17.5 hours per week for at least 12 consecutive months) immediately preceding the leave
Have worked at a location with at least 21 employees within 50 miles during any period of 20 consecutive workweeks in the preceding two calendar years
What is Alaska’s paid sick leave policy?
Alaska doesn’t offer workers paid disability leave for instances when they’re forced to take time off work, but the state does require employers to provide paid sick leave.
In Alaska, all employers have to give their employees paid sick leave, regardless of whether they work full-time or part-time. Employees accrue one hour of sick leave (paid at their regular rate of pay) for every 30 hours they work. They can use that leave to recover from an illness or injury, care for a loved one, or receive help related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
If you have fewer than 15 employees, you need to let them accrue and use up to 40 hours of paid sick leave each year. If you have more than 15 employees, you must allow them to accrue and use up to 56 hours of sick leave per year.
You also have to give employees the option to carry over any unused sick leave into the next year—unless you frontload their sick leave at the start of the year.
How does federal leave work?
Similar to the AFLA, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that requires certain employers (those with at least 50 employees) to give eligible workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for one of four reasons:
To care for and bond with a new child (including newly born, adopted, and fostered children)
To care for a family member with a serious health condition (including spouses, children, and parents)
To manage a serious personal health condition
To manage affairs when a family member, including a spouse, child, or parent, is on or called to active duty
Who qualifies for FMLA leave?
To meet the eligibility requirements for federal leave, Alaska employees have to:
Work for an employer with at least 50 employees working within a 75-mile radius
Need time off from work for bonding, caregiving, personal medical reasons, or military exigency
Have worked for their employer for at least one year (consecutively or non-consecutively)
Have over 1,250 hours of service in the 12 months immediately before leave begins
The difference between FMLA leave and AFLA leave
Alaska’s unpaid leave for state workers is fairly similar to unpaid federal leave, which applies to state and non-state workers alike. Eligible state employees might qualify for both AFLA and FMLA leave, in which case they’ll receive whichever program offers stronger benefits.
Here are the differences:
FMLA leave | AFLA leave | |
Applicable to | Private and public sector employees who meet the eligibility requirements | Only public sector/state employees who meet the eligibility requirements |
Eligibility reasons | Bonding with a new child; personal health conditions; caring for a family member who has a serious health condition; military exigency leave | Managing a qualifying serious medical condition; managing a pregnancy-related health condition; bonding with a new child (either born or adopted) |
Eligibility requirements | Meet one eligibility reason; have worked for employer for at least one year; have over 1,250 hours of service in the past year; employer has at least 50 employees who work within a 75-mile radius | Meet one eligibility reason; have worked for a state/public sector employer for at least 35 hours a week for six months; have worked at a location with at least 21 employees within 50 miles during any 20 workweeks in the past two years |
Job protection | Yes | Yes |
Length of leave | Up to 12 weeks within a year | Up to 18 weeks within a year for pregnancy, childbirth, and adoption; up to 18 weeks within two years for a qualifying serious medical condition |
Payment | Unpaid | Unpaid |
Health benefits | Yes, employers are required to continue providing health benefits to employees on FMLA leave | Yes, employers are required to continue providing health benefits to employees on AFLA leave for the first 12 weeks of leave, but ONLY if they’re covered under AFLA but excluded from FMLA coverage |
How do Alaska employers comply with FMLA leave?
Not every business has to comply with FMLA. You only have to follow FMLA laws if you’re a covered employer, meaning you employ at least 50 people who work within a 75-mile radius of your business.
If you’re a covered employer, make sure you know your responsibilities.
Step 1: Remind employees of their rights
By law, you’re required to post a general notice in your workplace explaining what FMLA leave is, who’s eligible, and how employees can file a complaint with the Wage and Hour Division. Print the poster in English and any other languages your employees speak.
You also have to give written notice to all your employees eligible for FMLA leave, either with a printed form or an invitation to review your employee handbook.
Step 2: Give employees the correct FMLA notices
When one of your employees requests a leave, you have five business days to give them a Rights and Responsibilities Notice explaining the following:
The 12-month period in which your employee’s leave can take place, along with their expected leave start and return dates
Your employee’s right to job protection
Your employee’s right to substitute PTO for FMLA leave, and whether or not you’ll require that
Your employee’s right to receive continued health insurance, and whether or not they need to continue paying health insurance premiums while on leave
Whether or not your employee needs to provide certification for the leave
Then, before your employee takes leave, hand them a Designation Notice to let them know that their requested leave counts as FMLA leave.
Step 3: Give employees their position at the end of leave
Because FMLA leave is job-protected, you’re required by law to restore your employees to their previous positions when they return from leave.
Step 4: Keep your records
Save all your payroll receipts, paystubs, official employee requests for leave, documentation of leave start and end dates, and copies of FMLA notices. It’s a good idea to hold onto payroll and personnel records for at least three years.
What happens if you don’t comply with FMLA?
You’re not allowed to prevent your employees from taking FMLA leave if they qualify, or discriminate against them for taking leave. If you don’t follow the Department of Labor’s leave posting and notification requirements, you could face civil penalties ranging from $200 to $1,000, respectively.
Employees can also file lawsuits against your company and force you to pay lost wages and legal fees, or reinstate their roles.
The value of paid family leave
Paid family leave has endless benefits—for employees, employers, and economies.
When people are able to take sufficient time off work during significant, sensitive life events, they’re more equipped to come out on the other side feeling financially, physically, and emotionally stable. Paid leave puts people in a better position to handle the demands of their personal and professional lives when they return to work.
For employers, paid leave works as both a recruitment tactic and a retention tool. You’re more likely to attract great job candidates with paid leave as a part of your benefit package, and able to hold onto talented employees more easily when you support them holistically and not just as a worker. Stronger retention rates also go hand in hand with higher workplace satisfaction and greater productivity.
And local and state economies benefit when people take paid leave. Paid leave gives more people, especially women, the option to remain in the workforce and support their families financially.
Should I give paid family leave to my employees?
When you have employees in Alaska, you have an interesting opportunity as an employer. You can stick with the status quo, giving your employees the minimum amount of paid sick leave you’re required to provide, but no paid family leave.
Or you can offer paid family leave, either paying out of pocket or purchasing some type of PFL insurance product. Even a super basic leave plan—say, six weeks of PFL at 65% of an employee’s salary—can make a huge difference in your employees’ lives.
Talk with your benefits broker and meet with your CPA to discuss your budget and options for offering paid leave. And if you need help crafting a paid leave plan, check out Gusto’s guide to paid parental leave.
Want more state-specific advice and tips? Bookmark our guides to starting a new business in Alaska, business tax incentives in Alaska, hiring in Alaska, and business grants and loans in Alaska.
