In 1993, under President Bill Clinton, the federal government introduced the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The law was the first of its kind to offer a work/life balance to individuals, when caring for family members or themselves, with protection from discipline or termination of employment. Approximately 60% of private sector companies are required to comply with FMLA.
Federal law has set levels on the requirement of an employer, with 50 or more employees, to comply to the full extent of the law if they have employees within 75 miles of each other. States have progressively expanded coverage to employers with fewer than 50 employees and the scope of who you can care for and when you can apply has broadened to include domestic partners/civil unions, step-children, step-parents, parent-in-law, child of a domestic partner/civil union, and anyone you are assuming legal responsibilities for that is living within your household.
Individual State FMLA Coverage & Requirements
- California – Domestic partner and domestic partner’s child.
- Connecticut – Civil union partner and parent-in-law.
- Hawaii – Grandparent, parent-in-law, grandparent-in-law, and employee’s reciprocal beneficiary.
- Maine – 15 or more employees for private employers, 25 or more employees for city or town employers, domestic partner and domestic partner’s child.
- Maryland – 15 or more employees for private employers. Up to 7 days for bone marrow donation and 30 days for organ donation. Leave includes step-children/parent and adoption or primary caregiver (even if not related).
- Minnesota – 21 or more employees (parental leave only).
- New Jersey – Covers civil union and civil union partner’s child, parent-in-law, and step-parent.
- Oregon – 25 or more employees. Covers domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild and parent-in-law.
- Rhode Island – 30 or more employees for public employers. Covers parent-in-law and domestic partners of state employees.
- Vermont – 10 or more employees (parental leave only). 15 or more employees for private employers are given 4 to 24 hours a year for appointments. Covers civil union partner and parent-in-law.
- Washington – All employers are required to provide insured parental leave.
- Washington, D.C. – 20 or more employees. Covers blood related relatives, legal custody or marriage, a person with whom the employee lives and child who lives with employee for which they assume legal responsibilities.
Under the law, employees are eligible to apply for FMLA for up to 12 weeks if they reach the criteria of having worked 1250 hours and for the employer for 12 or more months (not required to be consecutive). Life events that are identified as granting approval include the birth of their child, caring for a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition, the serious health condition of the employee and the placement of a child into foster care or adoption (plus, additional state requirements). Special rules apply that allow up to 26 weeks surrounding circumstances with an active military status for a parent, spouse or child.
The law’s longest ongoing debate is whether to enact a mandatory method of payment for the employees when on leave. Many employers offer a percentage of pay through disability insurance when the circumstance for the leave surrounds the employee themselves. Many others do not have a policy in place to provide pay to the employees, leaving them to choose between taking time off to improve their health/assist another and collecting an ongoing paycheck. As of today, 3 states pay employees through state funds when they are under protection of FMLA: California, New Jersey and Rhode Island.
All covered employers are mandated by law to have a poster displayed in the workplace covering all provisions. If your employees work remotely, make sure to email/mail them a copy of the poster, or even better, upload the documents in your Kin files section and share! FMLA documents need to be accessible to all eligible employees. Documents should reflect a clear definition of the employer’s expectations, obligations of both parties, and appropriate paperwork (approval documents, restored to duty forms, and payroll deductions).
Both employers and employees have rights alike. Understanding your responsibilities lessens the possibility of fines and legal disputes that could present themselves.
images by:
Jakob Owens