No comprehensive state family and medical leave law
Texas has not enacted a comprehensive state family and medical leave statute for private-sector employers. Employees must rely on the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for job-protected leave. While the Texas Workforce Commission recognizes FMLA as the applicable framework, state law does not mandate additional family or medical leave protections beyond federal requirements. Employers may voluntarily offer enhanced leave benefits, but no state statute requires them to do so.
Source: Texas Workforce Commission – Texas Work & Family Policies
Sick leave accrual for state employees
Texas state employees accrue paid sick leave at the rate of eight hours per month of state employment under Texas Government Code § 661.202. Part-time state employees accrue sick leave on a proportionate basis. Accrual begins on the first day of state employment and ends on the last duty day. This statutory sick leave benefit applies only to state agency employees and does not extend to private-sector workers.
Source: Tex. Gov't Code § 661.202
No state-mandated paid or unpaid sick leave for private employers
Texas does not require private-sector employers to provide paid or unpaid sick leave under any state statute or regulation. The Texas Workforce Commission states explicitly that "no current Texas or federal law requires private-sector employers to provide paid or unpaid leave of any kind," with the exception of unpaid leave that may be necessary as a reasonable accommodation under disability, pregnancy, or other protected-status statutes. Employers are free to adopt voluntary sick-leave policies but face no state-law obligation to do so.
Local ordinance preemption. Several Texas cities—including Austin, San Antonio, and Dallas—passed local paid sick leave ordinances between 2018 and 2019. Austin's ordinance, for example, would have required accrual of one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, capped at 64 hours per year for larger employers. However, in 2023 the Texas Legislature enacted the Texas Regulatory Consistency Act (House Bill 2127), which added Section 1.005 to the Texas Labor Code and prohibits municipalities and counties from adopting or enforcing any ordinance regulating "employment leave, hiring practices, breaks, employment benefits, scheduling practices, and any other terms of employment that exceed or conflict with federal or state law." The Act took effect September 1, 2023, and nullified all existing local paid sick leave ordinances. Cities and counties may no longer enact or enforce such mandates.
Employer policy as contract. Although Texas law does not mandate sick leave, if an employer voluntarily establishes a written sick-leave policy—whether in an employee handbook, employment contract, or policy manual—the employer must follow that policy as written. The Texas Payday Law (Labor Code Chapter 61) treats promised paid leave as a form of compensation. If the employer's written policy promises accrual or payout of sick leave and the employer fails to comply, the employee may have a wage claim under the Payday Law. The TWC advises that "it is very important for employers to develop a clear, preferably written, policy regarding paid leave and follow it exactly."
Intersection with federal FMLA. Private employers with 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius remain subject to the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (29 U.S.C. §§ 2601–2654), which requires up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for qualifying family and medical reasons. FMLA does not require paid leave, but employees may use accrued paid sick leave (if the employer offers it) concurrently with FMLA leave if the employer's policy permits or requires substitution. Texas has no state-equivalent family leave law; FMLA is the sole statutory baseline for job-protected medical and family leave in the private sector.
Source: Texas Workforce Commission – Vacation and Sick Leave
Source: Tex. Labor Code § 1.005