Pennsylvania presents a uniquely divided landscape for paid leave. The state legislature has not passed a statewide paid leave law, leaving most Pennsylvania workers without statutory protections outside of federal FMLA. But two of the state's largest cities — Philadelphia and Pittsburgh — have enacted their own paid sick leave ordinances that create real obligations for employers operating within their borders.
For HR professionals managing employees across Pennsylvania, this creates a patchwork: different rules in Philadelphia, different rules in Pittsburgh, and essentially employer discretion everywhere else. Understanding which rules apply where — and what the Pennsylvania Wage Payment and Collection Law (WPCL) does to enforce written PTO promises — is the key to compliance.
⚖️ Pennsylvania PTO Law — At a Glance (2026)
Statewide Pennsylvania: Policy Controls Everything
Outside Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania employees are entirely dependent on their employer's written PTO policy. The state has no paid vacation law, no paid sick leave law, and no mandatory payout requirement. What an employer promises in a handbook, offer letter, or employment agreement is what the employee is legally entitled to — no more, no less.
Pennsylvania's Wage Payment and Collection Law (WPCL) provides the enforcement mechanism. The WPCL does not create a right to vacation pay; it enforces the one the employer agreed to. If an employer's written policy makes accrued PTO part of an employee's compensation and promises payout at termination, those hours are earned wages, and withholding them exposes the employer to the unpaid amount, liquidated damages of 25% or $500 (whichever is greater) where there is no good-faith dispute, and mandatory attorney's fees.
Philadelphia: The Promoting Healthy Families and Workplaces Ordinance
Philadelphia passed its paid sick leave ordinance in 2015, making it one of the first major cities in the Northeast to do so. The law covers all private employers with 10 or more employees who work within Philadelphia city limits.
Key provisions:
- Accrual: 1 hour of sick leave for every 40 hours worked in Philadelphia, up to 40 hours per year
- Waiting period: Leave accrues from day one; usage permitted after 90 days of employment
- Carryover: Up to 40 hours carry over to the following year; employers may cap total accrued at 40 hours at any given time
- Covered employees: Those who work at least 40 hours per year in Philadelphia — including part-time and seasonal workers
- Permitted uses: Employee's own illness, care of a family member, preventive care, domestic violence leave
- Small employers: Employers with fewer than 10 employees must provide unpaid sick leave under the ordinance
Pittsburgh: The Paid Sick Days Act
Pittsburgh's paid sick leave story is notable: the city passed its Paid Sick Days Act in 2015, but a legal challenge delayed implementation for four years. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld the law in 2019 and it became enforceable in March 2020. It was then substantially expanded. An amendment passed on June 10, 2025 and effective January 1, 2026 speeds accrual to 1 hour per 30 hours worked and raises the annual minimum to 72 paid hours for employers with 15 or more employees and 48 paid hours for smaller employers. An employer may front-load those hours at the start of the year, in which case carryover is not required.
Pittsburgh's ordinance has a slightly different structure than Philadelphia's:
| Provision | Philadelphia | Pittsburgh |
|---|---|---|
| Employer size (paid leave) | 10+ employees | 15+ employees |
| Smaller employers | Fewer than 10 — unpaid leave | Fewer than 15 — paid leave |
| Accrual rate | 1 hr / 40 hrs worked | 1 hr / 30 hrs worked (from 2026) |
| Annual minimum (larger employers) | 40 hours | 72 hours (from 2026) |
| Annual minimum (smaller employers) | 40 hours, unpaid | 48 hours, paid (from 2026) |
| Usage waiting period | 90 days | 90 days |
The 2026 amendment pulled Pittsburgh well ahead of Philadelphia. A full-time Pittsburgh employee at a larger employer now accrues toward 72 hours a year at 1 hour per 30 worked, against Philadelphia's 40 hours at 1 hour per 40 — and even a Pittsburgh employer with fewer than 15 people must provide 48 paid hours, where a Philadelphia employer with fewer than 10 owes only unpaid time.
PTO Payout at Termination: What the WPCL Means in Practice
Pennsylvania's WPCL doesn't automatically treat accrued PTO as wages — but it becomes wages if the employer's policy says so. This creates two distinct categories of Pennsylvania employers:
| Policy Language | Pennsylvania WPCL Outcome |
|---|---|
| "Accrued PTO is paid at termination" | Legally required — WPCL enforces as earned wages. 25% liquidated damages if withheld. |
| "Unused PTO is forfeited at termination" | Generally enforceable — the WPCL only enforces what the employer agreed to pay |
| "PTO paid out if 2 weeks notice given" | Generally enforceable as a term of the agreement — the condition is part of what was promised |
| Policy silent on termination payout | Unsettled — the claim turns on what the employer's practice and communications show it agreed to |
Use-It-Or-Lose-It in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania permits use-it-or-lose-it vacation policies, with the caveat that they must be clearly communicated. Because the WPCL enforces the terms the employer set, a clear forfeiture term in a handbook or offer letter generally holds. The key is that the policy must exist before the leave is accrued: vacation already earned under earlier, more generous terms was already part of what the employer agreed to pay, so applying a new forfeiture rule to it exposes the employer to a WPCL claim.
Some Pennsylvania employers implement rolling caps (you can carry up to X hours at any time) rather than hard year-end forfeitures — which avoids the December 31st "use it or lose it" scramble and reduces the risk of contested forfeiture claims.
Federal Contractor Employees in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has a significant federal contractor workforce, particularly in the Philadelphia region (defense, healthcare contracting) and western Pennsylvania (manufacturing, defense). Employees on covered federal contracts are subject to Executive Order 13706, requiring up to 56 hours of paid sick leave annually. This is a meaningful benefit for a segment of Pennsylvania workers who are otherwise in an employer-discretion state.
Track Your Pennsylvania PTO All Year
Whether you're in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, or anywhere else in Pennsylvania, knowing your exact PTO balance before requesting time off protects you. Keep it tracked with our free calculator.
Open the PTO Calculator →Final Paycheck Timing in Pennsylvania
Under 43 P.S. § 260.5 of the Wage Payment and Collection Law, where an employer separates an employee from the payroll, or an employee quits or resigns, the wages or compensation earned become due and payable "not later than the next regular payday … on which such wages would otherwise be due and payable." One deadline, whichever way the job ended.
The penalty is unusually mechanical, and worth understanding before assuming a late payment is not worth pursuing. 43 P.S. § 260.10 provides that where wages remain unpaid for 30 days beyond the regular payday, or for 60 days beyond the filing of a wage claim, the employee may recover liquidated damages of 25% of the total wages due, or $500 — whichever is greater. The "whichever is greater" floor matters most in small disputes: a $400 unpaid vacation balance carries the same $500 minimum as a $2,000 one. The same penalty also applies where shortfalls exceed 5% of gross wages on any two regular paydays in the same calendar quarter.
The good-faith exception. An earlier version of this page said § 260.10 contains no good-faith exception. It does. Liquidated damages are available only where "no good faith contest or dispute of any wage claim including the good faith assertion of a right of set-off or counter-claim exists accounting for such non-payment." Section 260.11a adds that a good-faith dispute "shall not be considered a violation of this act" — provided the employer has paid everything above the disputed amount. So an employer with a genuine dispute over what is owed escapes the 25%-or-$500 penalty, though not the wages themselves. What it does not escape is the attorney's fee: under § 260.9a(f) the court "shall" award reasonable attorneys' fees to a prevailing employee.
Frequently Asked Questions
When must a Pennsylvania employer issue my final paycheck?
By your next regular payday — the one on which those wages would otherwise have been due — under 43 P.S. § 260.5, whether you quit or were separated. If wages stay unpaid for 30 days past that payday, or 60 days past the filing of a wage claim, 43 P.S. § 260.10 allows liquidated damages of 25% of the total wages due or $500, whichever is greater — unless the employer has a good-faith dispute over the amount. Attorney's fees for a prevailing employee are mandatory under § 260.9a(f). The $500 floor is what makes small claims worth bringing.
Does Pennsylvania require paid vacation or PTO?
No. Pennsylvania has no statewide law requiring employers to provide paid vacation, PTO, or sick leave. Outside of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh (which have their own sick leave ordinances), Pennsylvania employers are free to offer or withhold paid leave. However, any leave promised in a written policy is enforceable as a wage under the WPCL.
Does Philadelphia require paid sick leave?
Yes. Philadelphia's Promoting Healthy Families and Workplaces Ordinance requires employers with 10 or more employees to provide paid sick leave. Employees accrue 1 hour per 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year, with a 90-day waiting period before usage. Employers with fewer than 10 employees must provide unpaid sick leave.
Does Pittsburgh require paid sick leave?
Yes, and more than it used to. Pittsburgh's Paid Sick Days Act, upheld by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2019, was amended effective January 1, 2026: employees accrue 1 hour per 30 hours worked, employers with 15 or more employees must provide up to 72 hours of paid sick time a year, and employers with fewer than 15 must provide up to 48 paid hours. Earlier figures of 40 hours, 24 hours and 1 hour per 35 no longer apply.
Does Pennsylvania require PTO payout at termination?
No state statute requires vacation payout at termination in Pennsylvania. However, if an employer's written policy promises to pay out accrued vacation, that promise is enforceable as wages under the WPCL — including 25% liquidated damages if withheld. Use-it-or-lose-it policies are permitted if clearly stated in the employee handbook.
Can Pennsylvania employers have use-it-or-lose-it PTO policies?
Yes, as long as the policy is clearly communicated in writing before the leave is accrued. The WPCL enforces the terms the employer set, so a clear forfeiture clause generally holds. Applying a new forfeiture rule to leave already earned under earlier terms is different: that leave was already part of what the employer agreed to pay.
What are the penalties for violating Philadelphia's sick leave ordinance?
Since the POWER Act (signed May 27, 2025), civil penalties are up to $2,000 per violation, alongside unpaid sick time, other lost wages, liquidated damages and attorney's fees. The City's Office of Worker Protections enforces the ordinance, but an employee no longer has to file an administrative complaint before going to court, and the limitation period is three years. Retaliation against employees who use or request protected sick leave is prohibited.
Sources
- Wage Payment and Collection Law, Act of July 14, 1961, P.L. 637, No. 329 (43 P.S. §§ 260.1–260.45) — § 260.5 (final pay), § 260.9a(f) (mandatory attorneys' fees), § 260.10 (liquidated damages and the good-faith condition), § 260.11a (good-faith dispute not a violation)
- Philadelphia Code ch. 9-4100 — Promoting Healthy Families and Workplaces, as amended by the POWER Act (2025)
- City of Pittsburgh — Paid Sick Days Act (Pittsburgh Code ch. 626), as amended effective January 1, 2026
- U.S. Department of Labor — Executive Order 13706, Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractors (still in force; not affected by the 2025 revocation of EO 14026)