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Article 40 - Family & Medical Leave
| Section 40.1 | Purpose |
| Section 40.2 | Entitlement to Leave |
| Section 40.3 | Use of Leave |
| Section 40.4 | Rights of Employees Taking FMLA Leave |
| Section 40.5 | Rights of District |
Article 40
FAMILY & MEDICAL LEAVE
Adopted 1/15/02
The purpose of this Article is to implement the requirements of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA or Act) so as to allow "eligible" employees of the District to take job‑protected, unpaid leave, or to substitute appropriate paid leave if the employee has earned or accrued it, for up to a total of 12 workweeks in any 12 months.
Section 40.2 Entitlement to Leave
An employee who has been employed with the District for at least 12 months and has worked at least 1,250 hours in the last year are eligible to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in the following situations:
(1) for the birth of a child and to care for the newborn child,
(2) for the placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care,
(3) because the employee is needed to care for a family member (child, spouse, or parent) with a serious health condition, or
(4) because the employee's own serious health condition makes the employee unable to perform the functions of his or her job.
(A) The use of any leave shall be in accordance with and subject to the regulations and procedures implementing FMLA.
(B) The District shall substitute the accrued paid leave (if any) of the employee for the unpaid leave.
Section 40.4 Rights of Employees Taking FMLA Leave
(A) An employee on FMLA leave shall be entitled to have health benefits maintained while on leave as if the employee had continued to work instead of taking the leave. If an employee was paying all or part of the premium payments prior to leave, the employee would continue to pay his or her share during the leave period. The District may recover its share only if the employee does not return to work for a reason other than the serious health condition of the employee or the employee's immediate family member, or another reason beyond the employee's control.
(B) An employee generally has a right to return to the same position or an equivalent position with equivalent pay, benefits and working conditions at the conclusion of the leave. The taking of FMLA leave shall not result in the loss of any benefit that accrued prior to the start of the leave.
Section 40.5 Rights of District
(A) The District shall have the right to 30 days advance notice from the employee, where practicable, that the employee intends to return to work.
(B) The District may require an employee to submit certification from a health care provider to substantiate that the leave is due to the serious health condition of the employee or the employee's immediate family member.
(C) The District may require that an employee present a certification of fitness to return to work when the absence was caused by the employee's serious health condition, and may delay restoring the employee to employment without such certificate relating to the health condition which caused the employee's absence.
(D) Failure to comply with these requirements may result in a delay in the start of FMLA leave or the employee’s return to work.