Missouri doesn’t currently offer employees paid leave, though elected officials have tried to pass laws introducing paid family and medical leave (PFML) programs.
However, if you employ people who live in the Show Me State, you still need to adhere to applicable federal leave laws. Learn which employers are subject to federal leave laws and which compliance tasks to take care of, plus bank tips on incorporating paid leave into your employee benefits.
Does Missouri have paid family and medical leave?
Missouri doesn’t have a PFML program for private-sector workers, nor does the state mandate paid disability leave or sick time for employees. In fact, the passage of HB 567 in August 2025 ended the state’s short-lived sick time law.
But like many other states (including Arizona and Florida), Missouri state government employees are eligible for paid parental leave following the birth or adoption of a child. Parents get 100% of their pay during leave, but the length of leave depends on their role:
Primary caregivers can take six weeks of leave.
Secondary caregivers can take three weeks of leave.
A few state representatives tried to introduce the Missouri Earned Family and Medical Leave Act in early 2026, a mandatory state program that would give eligible employees six weeks of wage replacement benefits during medical or family-related leaves. Unfortunately, the bill died in committee.
Do Missouri employers have to follow federal leave laws?
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that requires certain employers to give eligible workers 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave. Any employer with 50 or more employees working within a 75-mile radius is considered a covered employer under FMLA.
Who can take leave, and when?
Qualifying leave reasons (must meet one) | Eligibility requirements (must meet all four) |
To bond with a child (including newborn, adopted, and fostered children) To care for a family member (including spouses, children, and parents) dealing with a serious health condition To manage a serious personal health condition To manage affairs when a family member (including spouses, children, and parents) is on or called to active duty | Work for an employer that has at least 50 employees working within 75 miles Need to time off for bonding, caregiving, medical, or military leave Have worked for their employer for at least one year, consecutively or non-consecutively Have worked at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months before leave begins |
How Missouri employers stay compliant with FMLA
Remember: compliance isn’t something you check off your to-do list one time. It’s an ongoing job. If you’re a covered employer under FMLA, you have several regular responsibilities.
1. Notify employees of their leave rights
The US Department of Labor puts the onus on employers to inform employees of their leave rights. It starts with a labor poster; hang signage in your workplace that explains what FMLA leave is and when and how employees can take it.
Next, give written notice to all your FMLA-eligible employees. That includes people who’ve worked for you for at least a year and have performed 1,250 hours of work. The notice should include instructions on how and when to request a leave, like “Fill out [company’s] leave request form at least 30 days before you plan to take leave.”
2. Follow up with FMLA documents
After an employee requests leave, you have to get the official paperwork underway. There are two key documents you’ll pass along and ask your employees to fill out:
A Rights and Responsibilities Notice: This form specifies the reason your employee needs to take leave, confirms their hours of work service and length of work service requirements, tells them whether or not they’re required to provide certification for their leave, and lists out their rights and responsibilities with FMLA leave (including the dates they’re eligible to take leave). This form is due to your employee, not the DOL, within five days of their request for leave.
A Designation Notice: This form specifies that a leave request is officially FMLA-approved. You’ll check different boxes indicating whether or not you’ll require employees to use their paid time off or sick time during leave, and whether you’ll require employees to take certain steps when returning to work. This form also specifies exactly how much time an employee can take for leave. This form is due to your employee within five days of turning in the Rights and Responsibilities Notice.
3. Maintain your employees’ jobs and health insurance during leave
FMLA leave isn’t paid, but it does have two essential employee protections: continued health insurance and job safety. When your employees take leave, you need to continue paying the employer portion of their health insurance premiums and reinstate them to their jobs when they’re back from leave.
4. Keep thorough records of leave requests and approvals
The DOL isn’t involved in your business’s day-to-day leave management. They provide the framework for executing leaves and hand out fines to employers who don’t follow it, but supplying the correct documentation and overseeing leaves is up to you. That’s why it’s critical to maintain extensive records of all leave requests, approvals, denials, extenuating circumstances, and returns to work.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recommends keeping the following records for at least three to four years:
Employment contracts
Employee contact information
Employee job classification
Job start date
Timesheets
Payroll receipts
Documentation of employees requesting leave
Copies of all FMLA notices
Copies of leave certification paperwork
3 reasons to give your employees paid leave
When you employ people in Missouri, you’re not locked into any state-mandated benefit requirements—you have total autonomy over which benefits you provide. Next to health insurance, paid leave is one of the most essential and impactful benefits you can offer.
If you don’t offer paid leave yet, here are three compelling reasons to include it in your benefits package:
People need it. Employees aren’t robots or worker bees—they’re complete people experiencing the natural highs and lows of life. Taking care of your employees means nurturing them professionally and personally. When employees have time and financial support after, say, receiving a spouse’s cancer diagnosis or having a baby, they have more capacity to take care of themselves and their loved ones in the most challenging seasons of life. That deeper capacity can translate to better mental and physical health outcomes.
Paid leave raises employee retention rates. When employees feel cared for and supported by their employers, job satisfaction and engagement rates go up, which means employees are happier and more productive in their roles. These factors eventually lead to higher long-term retention rates and lower turnover.
Paid leave facilitates recruitment and hiring. Because employers in Missouri don’t have to offer paid leave, the ones that do really stand out. You can set your business apart and attract a wider pool of talented employees by providing and advertising your paid leave offering.
If you’re convinced, use this template to draft your first paid leave policy.
Resources for Missouri business owners
Save these handy guides on everything from hiring in Missouri to applying for state tax incentives:
