The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 requires the college to provide employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid and/or paid leave during a 12-month period for adoption or childbirth, to care for a seriously ill child, parent, spouse, individual residing within the same household, or the employee's own serious health condition.
During any time an employee is on unpaid FMLA leave they will not earn sick leave, annual leave, personal leave or any type of paid leave.
Employees must have worked for the college for 12 months and must have worked at least 1250 hours during the last 12-month period to be eligible for leave under the provisions of the Act.
The college will recognize an action calendar year (begins the first day of any leave classified as FMLA leave) in determining a repeat request.
In compliance with the provisions of the act, the college will:
- Continue to provide existing health care coverage while the employee is on leave.
- Guarantee an employee may return to either the same or comparable position upon return from the leave.
- Require an employee to use accrued sick, annual, and personal leave for the FMLA leave before going on unpaid FMLA leave.
The college reserves the right to:
- Exempt "key" employees (highest paid 10%) whose leave would cause the employer to suffer hardship.
- Require doctor's certification on a form supplied by the institution to verify a serious health condition and, at the employer's expense, a second medical opinion.
- Restrict couples employed at the same location to 12 weeks total for childbirth, adoption, foster care placement, or a seriously ill parent or child. If the leave is for a seriously ill spouse, or employee's illness, each employee is entitled to 12 weeks unpaid leave.
- Require a Fitness for Duty Certificate before allowing the employee to return to work after any FMLA leave.
Requests for foreseeable leave must be approved by the appropriate supervisor and be submitted 30 days prior to the requested leave date. Foreseeable leave includes: childbirth, adoption, or planned medical treatment.
