This post will guide you through employee leave laws for businesses and workers located in the state of Alaska.
Follow this guide to understand employers’ obligations for vacation time, paid time off (PTO), sick leave, parental leave, bereavement and more, along with state holidays observed in North Dakota.
This page is intended for reference purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please see official government sources or consult a legal professional for actual legal advice.
No federal or state laws require employers in North Dakota to provide vacation time (paid or unpaid).
If the company does choose to provide this benefit to their employees, they must abide by anything stated in their company policies/employment contracts in regards to PTO/vacation time.
Use It or Lose It policies are allowed in North Dakota, with the condition that employees are given reasonable opportunity to use their paid time off, and have received notice of the policy.
Use It or Lose It leave policies mean that any leave not used at the end of the year is forfeited, and not carried over to the following year. Learn more about Use It or Lose It policies here.
In North Dakota, earned paid time off is considered a form of wages, and any unused PTO must be paid out upon separation of employment (e.g. when an employee quits, is fired, retires or is laid off).
However, if each of the following three conditions are met when an employee quits, a company can withhold vacation pay:
Read More: PTO Payout Laws by State
North Dakota law does not require employers to offer paid or unpaid sick leave.
Besides any state laws or provisions written into employment contracts, employers in North Dakota must comply with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which entitles eligible employees the right to take 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for serious health conditions, or to care for spouses, children or parents with a serious health condition.
The following official state holidays are observed in North Dakota:
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year’s Day |
| 3rd Monday in January | Martin Luther King, Jr. Day |
| 3rd Monday in February | Presidents Day |
| 2 days before Easter | Good Friday |
| Last Monday in May | Memorial Day |
| June 19 | Juneteenth |
| July 4 | Independence Day |
| 1st Monday in September | Labour Day |
| November 11 | Veterans Day |
| 4th Thursday in November | Thanksgiving |
| December 25 | Christmas Day |
North Dakota does not mandate a paid or unpaid day off for state holidays, and employees required to work on state holidays are not legally entitled to extra compensation (such as higher pay or a compensatory day off), unless promised in their employment contract.
North Dakota does not have any specific laws regarding maternity leave.
However, the FMLA entitles new mothers to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for the birth of a new child, as well as the placement of a new adoption or foster. This law applies to eligible employees nationwide.
Paternity leave is not covered by law in North Dakota either, but fathers have the same right to unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 12 weeks for the birth of their child, or a new adoption or fostered child.
There is no legal requirement to provide bereavement leave in North Dakota.
Employers do not have to provide paid leave for jury duty (however employees must be allowed to serve their summons without being discharged, threatened, coerced or otherwise penalized).
While North Dakota encouraged employers to allow employees time off in order to vote, there is no legal requirement for this.
Federal Law (the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)) applies in North Dakota, which states that military service members receive up to five years of unpaid leave for military service, and upon returning, must be reinstated to the same position (or an equivalent position) as they had before their leave.
Anything not covered in North Dakota state leave laws is up to the discretion of the employer, such as whether or not to provide paid sick leave or PTO, or whether PTO rolls over from year to year.
However, if any benefits are laid out in an employee’s contract or company policy, employers must comply with what has been agreed in that document.
For example, if an employee’s contract states that they are to receive 12 days of PTO each year, the employer is legally required to provide this, even though paid time off is not required by state law.
https://www.nd.gov/labor/sites/www/files/documents/Brochures/Wage&Hour%20and%20Equal%20Emp.pdf
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