Publications

General Provisions

  1. What is the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)?

    The Family and Medical Leave Act is a federal law which became effective on Aug. 5, 1993. It provides certain employees with up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year and requires group health benefits be maintained during the leave. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued detailed regulations interpreting the FMLA.

  2. How can I find the U.S. Department of Labor regulations?

    The regulations can be found in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations at Title 29 beginning at Section 825.100. You also can access the regulations online at the U.S. Department of Labor. Click on "ESA" under "DOL Agencies." Then click on "FMLA."

  3. Which employers must provide this leave?X1


    All public employers2 and private employers who have 50 or more employees who have been on the payroll for 20 or more weeks in a calendar year are required to provide FMLA leave. However, not all employees of a covered employer are eligible for FMLA.

  4. Which employees are eligible?3


    Eligible employees are those who have worked for the employer:
    • a minimum of one year;
    • a minimum of 1,250 hours (an average of 25 hours per week) during the 12 months prior to the start of the FMLA leave; and
    • are employed at a location where at least 50 employees are working at the location within a 75-mile radius.4
    Each state, city, county and school district is considered an employer under FMLA for purposes of counting the number of employees to determine if an employee is "eligible" for FMLA leave. For example, if an agency in a city has fewer than 50 employees but the city as a whole employs 50 or more employees, the employee will be eligible.

  5. Must the 12 months an employee is working for the employer be consecutive?5

    No. If an employee is maintained on the payroll for any part of a week, including any periods of paid or unpaid leave (sick, vacation) during which other benefits or compensation are provided by the employer (e.g., workers' compensation, group health plan benefits, etc.), the week counts as a week of employment.

  6. Do the 1,250 hours include paid leave time or other absences from work?6

    No. The 1,250 hours include only those hours actually worked, on the job, for the employer. Paid leave, including workers' compensation, and unpaid leave, including FMLA leave, are not included in the 1,250 hours.

  7. What am I entitled to under FMLA?7

    A covered employer must grant an eligible employee up to a total of 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for one or more of the following reasons:
    • the birth and care of a newborn child;
    • the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care and to care for the newly placed child;
    • care for an immediate family member (spouse, child or parent — but not a parent "in-law") with a serious health condition; and
    • when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition. (See Appendix A for a definition of a "serious health condition.")
    An employee's entitlement to family and medical leave for the birth or placement of a child expires 12 months after the birth or placement of the child.8 For other requests for family leave, an employee may use up to 12 weeks each year.

  8. Can the employer require me to provide medical certification when requesting leave?9

    Yes. An employer may require that you provide a certification issued by your health care provider (see Appendix B for a definition of "health care provider") or that of your son, daughter, spouse or parent to support your request. The employer must allow the employee at least 15 calendar days to obtain certification. The certificate must include:
    • a description of the serious health condition;
    • the date that the condition began or treatment became necessary; and
    • the expected duration of the condition or treatment.10

  9. What happens to my health care benefits when I am on leave?11

    You may continue your coverage under the employer's group health plan. For example, if the employer pays 80 percent of your health care premium and you pay 20 percent, that same arrangement will continue during the unpaid leave period. Employers and employees may negotiate an arrangement in advance that will accommodate both the employer's administrative needs and the employee's financial situation. However, the employer cannot require prepayment. The regulations provide, at a minimum, that if an employee does not meet the agreed upon date for payment of the premium, he or she has a 30-day grace period during which provision of health coverage will not be affected. If coverage lapses for nonpayment of premium coverage, employees still must be restored with the same plan upon return with no restrictions.

    If you choose not to continue your health benefits while on FMLA leave, your coverage still must be fully restored, with no restrictions, when you return to work.

  10. What happens to my other employee benefits while I am on leave?12

    Taking leave will not result in the loss of any employment benefit accrued prior to the date the leave begins. Although the law does not entitle you to continue to accrue seniority or other benefits while on unpaid FMLA leave, unionized employees may negotiate stronger language protecting other benefits such as life insurance and pension rights for employees on unpaid leave. (See #11 on Page 21 of "Bargaining for FMLA")

  11. Can I be sure I'll have a job when I return from leave?13

    The law requires that an employee returning from leave be restored to the position they would have been in if they had not taken the leave. This means you can return to your old job or to an equivalent position with the same pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment. However, if, for example, your position was terminated during your leave and you would have been laid off, you are not entitled to get your job back. Note: "Key employees," who are among the highest paid 10 percent of all employees, may be denied reinstatement if necessary to avoid substantial and grievous economic injury to the employer's operation.14

  12. If I decide not to return to work after the leave, will I have to reimburse the employer for the cost of the health insurance?15

    It depends on the reason you do not return. If the reason is the continuation, onset or recurrence of a serious health condition, you will not have to reimburse the employer. Otherwise, the employer can require reimbursement.
Print Version