FMLA: The Supervisor’s Role

FMLA: The Supervisor’s Role

What is FMLA? The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 is a federal law Requires employers to provide job-protected leave for employees with qualifying life circumstances Allows 480 hours of job-protected leave, per fiscal year, for eligible employees 2

FMLA Qualifying Conditions To care for a new child (either birth or adoption) To care for a seriously ill family member (spouse, child, or parent) To recover from a qualified serious health condition To care for an injured military service member in one’s family To address qualifying exigencies arising out of a family member’s deployment 3

Eligibility Requirements Employees must have worked for MSU for a minimum of 12 months Employees must have worked a total of 1,250 hours within the 12-month period immediately preceding the date that the employee’s leave commences 4

Benefits of FMLA Allows benefits to be maintained for the duration of the employee’s qualifying leave (up to 480 hours) Protects an employee from disciplinary action for using approved FMLA leave Holds the employee’s position during an absence for up to 480 hours Allows the employee flexibility in absences from work: Consecutive Leave—taken continuously for an extended period of time Intermittent Leave—taken on an “as needed” basis for short periods of time* Reduced Leave—allows the employee’s normal schedule to be adjusted to accommodate the employee’s limited ability to work* *Employee must be able to perform the essential functions of their position in order to take these types of FMLA leaves. 5

When Does FMLA Apply If the employee is absent more than three (3) days, with the exception of the flu or a cold If the employee is absent periodically, for a chronic condition 6

Supervisor Responsibility Direct the employee to contact the appropriate leave team associate, to schedule an appointment Contact the appropriate leave team member, to request that FMLA documentation be sent to the employee Leave Advisor Contact Information: Last Names (A-L) Last Names (M-Z) Supervisor Beth Tominski, 884-0188 Sheila Chorey, 884-3652 Rosemary Huguelet, 884-0162 Notify the internal Human Resource person of any consecutive leave, especially if it will exceed ten days 7

The Leave Process Forms and a provisional letter are sent to the employee, and the department is copied Employee returns completed documentation to the leave team within 15 days, or the request is denied Either an approval or denial notice is sent to the employee, and the department is copied Intermittent FMLA is recertified at six months and renewed at twelve months. Notification is sent to the employee by the leave team, and the department is copied If a return to work note is required, the employee must present this to the leave team, prior to returning to work, and the department will be notified of it being received 8

Time Entry Intermittent time is recorded by either the employee or the department Consecutive time, up to ten days, is recorded by the department A leave of absence form must be submitted by the department, via EBS, if the employee is absent for eleven or more days Consecutive time, from day eleven on, is recorded by the Human Resources leave team, if the leave form has been received 9

Leave Return Process Employee must submit to HR a release to return to work from their healthcare provider, five days prior to their return date This release must address whether the employee can perform the essential functions of their position (i.e., restrictions) HR will notify and provide the appropriate documentation to the department of when the employee can officially return to work 10

Points of Interest FMLA may be effective after three (3) absences, but a leave of absence is effective after ten absences Family Sick and FMLA are not interchangeable, but they may run concurrently FMLA Form #2, Certification of Health Care Provider, for Employee’s Serious Health Condition, is no longer available at the HR website Current FMLA Forms are on the HR website (except form #2) Outdated forms will not be approved If the validity of the documentation is questionable, MSU will exercise it’s right to have the employee, or their family member, get a second opinion 11

Customer Service To optimize the customer service that can be provided, we ask that employees be directed to contact us, in advance, to schedule an appointment, prior to their arrival Leave Advisor Contact Information: Last Names (A-L) Last Names (M-Z) Supervisor Beth Tominski Sheila Chorey Rosemary Huguelet 884-0188 884-3652 884-0162 12

Family Medical Leave Act Forms (FMLA) http://www.hr.msu.edu/timoffleave/supportstaff/FMLAforms.htm Contact Leave Advisor to request Form 2 13

Form 1: Notice of Eligibility; Rights and Responsibilities and Designation Notice 14

Form 2: Certification by Health Care Provider for Employee’s Serious Health Condition Available from your Leave Advisor. *Job Description Must Be Attached* 15

Form 3: Certification of Health Care Provider for Family Member’s Serious Health Condition 16