CGS § 31-57r. Definitions.

As used in this section and sections 31-57s to 31-57w, inclusive:

(1) “Child” means (A) a biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild or legal ward of an employee, (B) a child of an employee standing in loco parentis, or (C) an individual to whom the employee stood in loco parentis when the individual was a child;

(2) “Employee” means an individual engaged in service to an employer in the business of the employer. “Employee” does not include (A) an individual who is a member of a construction-related tradesperson employee organization that is a party to a multiemployer health plan in which more than one employer is required to contribute to such plan and such plan is maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements between a construction-related tradesperson employee organization or organizations and employers, or (B) a seasonal employee;

(3) “Employer” means any person, firm, business, educational institution, nonprofit agency, corporation, limited liability company or other entity that (A) on and after January 1, 2025, employs twenty-five or more individuals in the state, (B) on and after January 1, 2026, employs eleven or more individuals in the state, and (C) on and after January 1, 2027, employs one or more individuals in the state which shall be determined based on such person's, firm's, business', educational institution's, nonprofit agency's, corporation's, limited liability company's or other entity's payroll for the week containing January first, annually. “Employer” does not include (i) an employer that participates in a multiemployer health plan in which more than one employer is required to contribute to such plan and such plan is maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements between a construction-related tradesperson employee organization or organizations and employers, or (ii) a self-employed individual;

(4) “Family member” means a spouse, sibling, child, grandparent, grandchild or parent of an employee or an individual related to the employee by blood or affinity whose close association the employee shows to be equivalent to those family relationships;

(5) “Family violence” has the same meaning as provided in section 46b-38a;

(6) “Grandchild” means a grandchild related to a person by blood, marriage, adoption by a child of the grandparent or foster care by a child of the grandparent;

(7) “Parent” means (A) a biological, foster or adoptive parent, stepparent, parent-in-law, legal guardian of an employee or an employee's spouse, (B) an individual standing in loco parentis to an employee, or (C) an individual who stood in loco parentis to the employee when the employee was a child;

(8) “Mental health wellness day” means a day during which an employee attends to such employee's emotional and psychological well-being in lieu of attending a regularly scheduled shift;

(9) “Paid sick leave” means paid time that is provided by an employer to an employee for the purposes described in section 31-57t;

(10) “Retaliatory personnel action” means any termination, suspension, constructive discharge, demotion, unfavorable reassignment, refusal to promote, disciplinary action or other adverse employment action taken by an employer against an employee;

(11) “Seasonal employee” means an employee who works one hundred twenty days or less in any year;

(12) “Sexual assault” means any act that constitutes a violation of section 53a-70b of the general statutes, revision of 1958, revised to January 1, 2019, or section 53a-70, 53a-70a, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b or 53a-73a;

(13) “Sibling” means a brother or sister related to an employee by (A) blood, marriage or adoption by a parent of the employee, or (B) by foster care placement;

(14) “Spouse” means a person who is (A) legally married to an employee under the laws of any state, or (B) a domestic partner of an employee registered under the laws of any state or political subdivision; and

(15) “Year” means any three-hundred-sixty-five-day period used by an employer to calculate employee benefits.

Short History

(P.A. 11-52, S. 1; P.A. 14-128, S. 1; P.A. 19-189, S. 9; P.A. 23-101, S. 7; P.A. 24-8, S. 1.)

Long History

History: P.A. 11-52 effective January 1, 2012; P.A. 14-128 redefined “employer” in Subdiv. (4) to provide that determination of number of employees is based on payroll for week containing October first, annually, redefined “service worker” in Subdiv. (7) to add Subpara. (QQQ) re radiologic technologists, added Subdiv. (10) defining “year”, and made technical changes, effective January 1, 2015; P.A. 19-189 redefined “sexual assault” in Subdiv. (8); P.A. 23-101 added new Subdiv. (6) defining “mental health wellness day” and redesignated existing Subdivs. (6) to (10) as Subdivs. (7) to (11); P.A. 24-8 redefined “child” in Subdiv. (1), deleted existing Subdiv. (2) and redesignated existing Subdivs. (3) and (4) as Subdivs. (2) and (3), redefined “employee” in redesignated Subdiv. (2), redefined “employer” in redesignated Subdiv. (3), added new Subdiv. (4) defining “family member”, added new Subdiv. (6) defining “grandchild”, added new Subdiv. (7) defining “parent”, redesignated existing Subdiv. (6) as Subdiv. (8), added new Subdiv. (9) defining “paid sick leave”, redesignated existing Subdiv. (7) as Subdiv. (10), deleted existing Subdiv. (8), redesignated existing Subdiv. (9) as Subdiv. (12), added new Subdiv. (11) defining “seasonal employee”, added Subdiv. (13) defining “sibling”, redesignated existing Subdivs. (10) and (11) as Subdivs. (14) and (15), and redefined “spouse” in redesignated Subdiv. (14), effective January 1, 2025.