[Faculty Handbook Category #1]
We grant up to 12 weeks (or 26 weeks, if leave is taken to provide care for a qualifying family member injured during active military service) of family and medical leave during any 12-month period to eligible employees, in accordance with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
Eligibility
In order to qualify for family and medical leave under this policy, you must meet all of the following conditions:
- You must have worked for us at least 12 months (these 12 months need not have been consecutive);
- You must have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 month-period immediately before the date when the leave would begin; and
- You must work in an office or worksite where 50 or more employees are employed within 75 miles of that office or worksite. (If you have no fixed office or work out of your home, you will be treated as though you work in the office to which you report.)
Reasons for Leave
In order for leave to qualify as FMLA leave under this policy, you must be taking leave for one of the reasons listed below:
- The birth of a child;
- The adoption of a child, or the placement of a child with you for foster care;
- Your own serious health condition;
- Care for a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition;
- A qualifying exigency for the spouse, children, or parents of individuals who are on, or are about to be on, covered active duty; or
- Care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness incurred or aggravated in the line of duty while on active duty.
If you have questions about whether your leave may be covered under this FMLA policy, you are encouraged to consult with the Human Resources Office.
Duration of Leave
12 Weeks
For all FMLA-covered leaves other than leave taken to provide care for a covered servicemember, if eligible you can take up to 12 weeks of leave under this policy during any 12-month period. We use a rolling 12-month period measured backward from the date that you use any leave under this policy to determine whether you have exhausted your 12 weeks of leave. Each time you take leave, we will compute the amount of leave that you have taken under this policy for any form of FMLA leave in the last 12 months and subtract that amount from your 12 weeks of available leave. The balance remaining is the amount that you are entitled to take at that time.
26 Weeks
For all FMLA-covered leaves taken to provide care for a covered servicemember, if eligible you can take up to 26 weeks of leave under this policy during any single 12-month period. This single 12-month period begins on the first day you take FMLA leave to provide care for the covered servicemember. Any FMLA time taken for any other reason during this single 12-month period shall count against the 26 weeks of leave available to care for the covered servicemember. Similarly, any FMLA leave taken to care for a covered servicemember shall count against the 12 weeks of leave available to you for any other reason.
Spouses
Due to workload, staffing, and other considerations, if you and your spouse both work for us, you and your spouse may be limited to a combined total of 12 weeks of leave for the birth of a child, adoption or placement of a child in foster care, to care for a parent with a serious health condition. Similarly, if you and your spouse both work for us, you may be limited to a combined total of 26 weeks of leave to care for a covered servicemember.
Employee Benefits During Leave
While you are on leave, we will continue your medical, dental, and other benefits during the leave period at the same level and under the same conditions as if you had continued to work. For information about premium payments during your leave, see our Impact of Leaves of Absence on Employee Benefits policy.
Use of Paid and Unpaid Leave
FMLA leave is unpaid. However, we require that you use all available paid time off during any FMLA leave, except where you are receiving worker’s compensation. Notwithstanding any other policy to the contrary, during periods of intermittent FMLA leave, paid time off can be used in the same increments as the amount of FMLA leave taken.
For information about what happens to your insurance benefits, ESST accruals, and eligibility for holiday pay during leave taken under this policy, see our Impact of Leaves of Absence on Employee Benefits policy.
Intermittent Leave or a Reduced Work Schedule
In addition to taking leave in consecutive blocks of time, you may be allowed to take time off intermittently (i.e., reduced workweeks or reduced workdays) if you need leave for one of the following reasons:
- Your serious health condition;
- The serious health condition of your spouse, parent, or child;
- Care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness incurred or aggravated in the line of duty while on active duty; or
- A qualifying exigency if you are the spouse, child, or parent of an individual who is on, or is about to be on, covered active duty.
To qualify for intermittent leave, you must show that the intermittent leave is medically necessary or related to a “qualifying exigency.” If leave is taken on an intermittent or reduced leave schedule because of a foreseeable need for leave (other than qualifying exigencies), we may temporarily transfer you to an alternative position with equivalent pay and benefits.
Certification of the Need for Leave
We may ask for certification to verify the need for leave for the reason requested by you. You must respond to such a request within 15 days of the request or provide a reasonable explanation for the delay. Failure to provide certification may result in a denial of the leave. We may also require recertification during the leave to verify the status of the need for leave.
We may directly contact the healthcare provider or other third-party to verify and clarify information contained in the certification. You are responsible for signing or obtaining any authorization necessary to permit the healthcare provider or other third party to provide us with the required information.
We have the right to ask for a second opinion of a certification of a serious health condition. Should we choose to do so, we will pay for you to get a certification from a second healthcare provider, which we will select. If it is necessary to resolve a conflict between the original certification and the second opinion, we will require the opinion of a third healthcare provider. We (you and us) will jointly select the third doctor, and we will pay for the opinion. This third opinion will be considered final.
Returning from Leave
If you take leave under this policy, you will be returned to the same job that you held when your leave began. If this is not feasible, you will be returned to a position that entails substantially equivalent skill, effort, responsibility and authority as the position you previously held. The only exceptions to this rule will be in circumstances of layoffs or reorganizations, where your position would have been eliminated even if you had not been on leave. You may be required to provide a fitness for duty assessment when returning from a leave of absence for your own serious health condition.
Procedure for Requesting Leave
When you plan to take leave under this policy, you must give us 30 days’ notice. If it is not possible to give 30 days’ notice, you must give as much notice as is practicable. If you are undergoing planned medical treatment, you are required to make a reasonable effort to schedule the treatment to minimize disruptions to our operations. If you fail to provide 30 days’ notice of foreseeable leave, the leave request may be denied until at least 30 days from the date we received notice.
When you request leave under this policy, you must submit the request in writing to your immediate supervisor, with a copy to the Human Resources Office. Where the need for leave is not foreseeable, you must orally / verbally notify your supervisor of the need for leave as soon as possible and follow our normal call-in procedures for unexpected absences. Failure to follow our normal call-in procedures under such circumstances will be treated like any other violation of our call-in procedures, and may result in discipline or termination, even though the leave itself may be covered by the FMLA. You may be required to confirm your need for FMLA leave in writing after giving oral / verbal notice.
While on leave, you may be required to periodically report to us regarding the status of your intent to return to work.
Rights, Remedies, and Additional Information
Words that appear in italics or quotes in this policy are terms defined by the FMLA, and we will rely upon those definitions in the law and regulations.
We fully comply with the provisions of the FMLA. Accordingly, if you have questions regarding this policy, contact the Human Resources Office. Further information on your rights and remedies under the FMLA can be located on our FMLA poster (which can be found in break areas), or online on the Department of Labor’s website at: https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/benefits-leave/fmla.
Updated 1/1/2026