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Colorado’s updated Colorado Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards (COMPS) Order #40, effective February 1, 2026, introduces new recordkeeping obligations for Colorado employers regarding employee vacation and sick leave. Here’s what employers need to know to stay compliant.
What Records Were Already Required?
Colorado employers have long been required to maintain a core set of employee records. These include basic identifying information such as the employee’s name, address, occupation, and date of hire, as well as date of birth for employees under 18.
On the compensation side, employers must keep a daily record of all hours worked, records of any credits claimed and tips received, and a pay period record covering regular rates of pay, gross wages earned, withholdings, and net amounts paid.
What’s New Under COMPS Order #40?
The amended regulations expand required recordkeeping to include leave balances. Employers must now also maintain records showing:
- Vacation (PTO) hours accrued, used, and available during the current benefit year; and
- Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (HFWA) or sick leave hours accrued, used, and available (to the extent tracked separately from PTO).
New Disclosure Requirements for Leave Balances
COMPS Order #40 also clarifies how employers must share leave balance information with employees.
Upon an employee’s request, an employer must provide, in writing or electronically, documents sufficient to show the information detailed above. Employees may make such requests no more than once per month, unless the employer’s own policy allows more frequent requests.
Employers retain flexibility in how they deliver this information. Acceptable methods include pay stubs, electronic self-service portals, or separate written or electronic communications.
Action Steps for Employers
Employers should audit their existing recordkeeping systems to confirm they can capture and store leave accruals, usage, and available balances for both vacation and sick leave. If vacation and HFWA/sick leave are not already tracked separately, payroll or HR software should be updated accordingly.
Employers should also review pay stub templates and employee self-service portals to confirm that leave balance information can be surfaced upon request by employees.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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