Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
The intent of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is to allow
employees to meet medical and family care needs while still maintaining
job and economic security.
FMLA is a Federal law requiring employers including USF to provide up to
12 weeks or 480 hours of job-protected leave for certain family and
medical reasons to individuals who have been employed at least 12 months
(not necessarily consecutively) by the university and who have worked at
USF for at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months preceding the first
day of the leave. At the university, Administration, Faculty, Staff,
and Temporary employees meeting these criteria are eligible. FMLA leave
may be taken on a continuous or intermittent basis.
1.
Adoption of a child or children, birth of a child or children, or
placement of a foster child or children
2. An
employee’s own serious health condition
3. Care
for an immediate family member (spouse, child, and parent) with a
serious health condition
4.
Care for a family member or next of kin relative injured or ill
as a result of serving as an active duty service member (up to 26 weeks
can be approved for this qualifying reason)
5.
To attend to qualifying
exigencies related to an immediate family member being on active duty or
having been notified of an impending call or order to active duty in the
National Guard or Reserves
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FMLA leaves of absence are tracked on a fiscal year basis (July 1 –
June 30). An employee, who has
a chronic serious health condition that cannot be resolved within a
fiscal year time period, must recertify the FMLA entitlement for the
following fiscal year by submitting updated medical certification or
documentation.
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Employees requesting intermittent (episodic) use of FMLA leave must
make reasonable efforts to schedule the leave to minimize disruption
of the department’s functioning.
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The
maximum entitlement of intermittent FMLA hours is based on the
eligible employee’s full time equivalency or FTE. A Temporary
employee, working a variable schedule, is granted the average number
of hours worked per week for the 12 weeks preceding the leave.
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Two
employees who are married and work for the university, are entitled
to a total of 12 weeks of FMLA leave to care for a child following
birth or placement for adoption or foster care.
Medical documentation is maintained in a confidential file, separate
from an employee’s personnel file, secured to the extent permissible
under law.
FMLA may have interactions
with other laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and Workers’
Compensation. Employee Relations administers FMLA compliance at the
university and assists employees and departments with the process.
Pay and Benefits
FMLA does not entitle an employee to leave with pay. However, accrued
and unused leave, such as annual, sick, or other compensatory leave,
must be used
to provide continuation of pay and benefits
during an FMLA-designated leave. If an employee does not have accrued
leave or the leave balances are depleted during the FMLA leave, the
remainder of the FMLA-designated leave will be unpaid. If eligible, an
employee may use Sick Leave Pool hours or donated sick leave to remain
in a paid status. If an employee on an approved FMLA leave of
absence has no paid leave to cover the time,
either
Payroll or
the campus Human Resources office should be contacted to make
arrangements to pay the employee portion of applicable insurance
premiums so that coverage will stay in effect.
If you need to request FMLA leave or are a supervisor looking for more
information refer to the links below or contact the appropriate Human
Resources office at:
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USF
Polytechnic: (863) 667-7035
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USF
Sarasota-Manatee: (941) 359-4224
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USF St.
Petersburg: (727) 873-4775
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USF
Tampa: (813) 974-2970 (Employee
Relations)
Click Here for
Complete Details, Forms and Directions for FMLA:
06/15/2009
