4.26 Family and Medical Leave
 
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I. Purpose

 

The purpose of the Family and Medical Leave Regulation is to comply with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA).  Additional information may be obtained from the Associate Vice President for Human Resources.

 

II. Rule

 

Employees who have been employed by the College for at least twelve months prior to the date leave is to commence under FMLA, who have worked at least 1250 hours over the previous twelve months, who work at a location where fifty or more employees are employed by the College within 75 miles,  are eligible for unpaid leave under FMLA.

 

Eligibility for leave for childbirth or adoption of a child under the age of 2 will be provided to all full-time employees, and it will not be necessary for them to have worked at least 1250 hours over the previous twelve-months.

 

Nothing in these regulations shall be construed to entitle any employee to accrue any seniority or employment benefits during any period of leave or any right, benefit, or position of employment other than any right, benefit, or position to which the employee would have been entitled had the employee not taken FMLA leave.

 

III. Regulations

 

A. Leave Entitlement

 

The College must grant up to twelve weeks of unpaid family or medical leave during a twelve-month period for any of the following:

 

1. The birth of a child of the employee and in order to care for such child

 

2. The placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care;

 

3. A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of the position of such employee; or

 

4. In order to care for any member of the employee's immediate family (parents, legal guardians or surrogates, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, spouse, children, spouse's parents, or spouse's legal guardians or surrogates, or any dependent living with the employee) if such family member has a serious health condition. Spouses employed by the College are jointly entitled to a combined total of twelve work weeks of family leave for the birth of a child, placement of a child for adoption or foster care, or to care for a parent who has a serious health condition.

 

Leave for birth of a child or placement of a child for adoption or foster care must conclude within twelve months of the birth or the placement. An employee is entitled to twelve weeks of FMLA leave in any twelve-month period. The twelve-month period is measured backwards from the date an employee uses any FMLA leave. Each time an employee takes FMLA leave, the remaining leave entitlement would be any balance of the twelve weeks which has not been used during the twelve-month period.

 

In some cases, intermittent leave or leave on a reduced work schedule is available. This is leave which is taken in blocks of time or by reducing a normal weekly or daily work schedule. Such leave is available whenever medically necessary to care for a family member who has a serious health condition or because the employee has a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to work.

 

If any employee requests intermittent leave, the College may require the employee to transfer temporarily to an available alternative position for which the employee is qualified and which better accommodates recurring periods of leave than does the employee's regular position.

 

B. Designation of Paid Leave

 

The employee has the following options for charging leave:
If leave is for: The employee:
Birth (applies to both parents) and child care after birth May choose to exhaust available sick leave and/or vacation/bonus leave (or any portion), or go on sick leave without pay during the period of disability.  Only vacation/bonus or leave without pay may be used before and after the period of disability unless the sick leave policy becomes appropriate for medical conditions affecting the child or mother.
Adoption May choose to exhaust available vacation/bonus leave (or any portion), or sick leave (if child is ill, see PPM 4.17 Sick Leave), or go on leave without pay.
Foster care May choose to exhaust available vacation/bonus leave (or any portion), or go on leave without pay.
Illness of child, spouse, parent May choose to exhaust available sick leave and/or vacation/bonus leave (or any portion), or go on leave without pay.
Employee's illness Does not have the option of taking leave without pay if sick leave is available; however, the employee may use vacation/bonus leave in lieu of sick leave.  If the illness extends beyond the 60-day waiting period required for short-term disability, the employee may choose to exhaust the balance of available leave or begin drawing short-term disability benefits.

 

C. Maintenance of Health Benefits

 

While an employee is on FMLA leave, the employee must continue to pay the cost of dependent group health benefit premiums. The payment of the dependent group health premiums should be arranged with the Associate Vice President for Human Resources prior to taking the first day of FMLA leave. Failure of the employee to pay those premiums within 30 days of the due date may result in termination of group health coverage for the dependent(s).

 

Except in limited situations, the College will be entitled to recover from an employee all premiums paid by the College to maintain health coverage for employees who fail to return to work after FMLA leave. An employee must return to work for 30 days in order to avoid being obligated to repay such amounts. Also, an employee will not have to repay such amounts if the failure to return to work is due to circumstances beyond the control of the employee.

 

D. Job Restoration

 

Subject to certain exceptions (such as when the employee would not otherwise have been employed at the time reinstatement is requested, or the employee is within the category of employees where restoration would cause substantial and grievous economic injury to the College), employees who take FMLA leave are entitled to be reinstated to their original job or to an equivalent job with equivalent pay, benefits, and other employment terms and conditions.

 

Nothing in these regulations shall be construed to entitle any restored employee to accrue any seniority or employment benefits during any period of leave or any right, benefit, or position of employment other than any right, benefit, or position to which the employee would have been entitled had the employee not taken the leave.

 

E. Maintenance of Other Benefits

 

In order to restore any benefit, other than group health benefits, provided by insurance to the employee without the employee having to re-qualify for such benefits upon his/her return from leave, the College may find it necessary for premiums for such insurance to be paid continuously during the unpaid leave period to avoid a lapse of coverage. The College shall be entitled to recover any such payments to maintain coverage of benefits during the employee's unpaid leave, whether or not the employee returns from leave, unless the employee does not return to work due to circumstances beyond the control of the employee.

 

IV. Procedures

 

A. Notice and Reporting by Employees

 

1. Employees desiring FMLA leave must give at least 30 days notice to the College of the need for leave, whenever foreseeable.

 

2. Whenever leave is based on planned medical treatment, whether for an immediate family member or the employee, the employee should schedule the treatment so as not to unduly disrupt the operations of the College, whenever foreseeable.

 

3. An employee on FMLA leave will be required to report periodically on his/her status and intention to return to work.

 

4. Employees should advise the College if and when they decide unequivocally not to return to work.

 

5. Any exception to 30 days notice in III. A. l. would be taken to the unit vice president for approval.

 

6. If an employee fails to give 30 days notice for foreseeable leave with no reasonable excuse for the delay, the College will deny the taking of the FMLA leave until at least 30 days after the date the employee provides notice to the College for the need of FMLA leave.

 

B. Designation of Leave

 

1.  It is the College's responsibility to determine that an employee is eligible for FMLA leave.  An employee may submit an application for Family Medical Leave which can be obtained from the HR department or online at http://www.cpcc.edu/humanresources/forms/.  However, the key in designating FMLA leave is the qualifying reason(s), not the employee's election or reluctance to use FMLA leave or to use all, some, or none of the accrued leave.  The College's designation must be based on information obtained from the employee or an employee's representative (e. g. spouse, parent, physician, etc.).

2.  If an employee notifies the College of the need for FMLA leave before the employee meets the eligibility criteria, the College is required to:

  • confirm the employee's eligibility effective on the date leave is to start, or
  • advise the employee when the requirement will be met.

 3. Employees seeking to use FMLA leave may be required, at the election of the College, to provide:

 

a. Medical certifications supporting the need for leave due to a serious health condition affecting the employee or an immediate family member no later than 15 calendar days after the request by the College.

 

b. Second or third medical opinions and periodic re-certification (at the College's expense).  The College is permitted to designate the health care provider to furnish the second opinion, but the selected health care provider may not be employed on a regular basis by the College.  If the opinions of the employee's and the College's designated health care providers differ, the College may require the employee to obtain certification from a third health card provider, again at the College's expense.  This third opinion shall be final and binding.  The third health care provider must be designated or approved jointly by the College and the employee.  The College is required to provide the employee, within two business days, with a copy of the second and third medical opinions where applicable, upon request by the employee.

 

c. Medical re-certification at the request of the College at reasonable intervals, but not more often than every 30 days unless certain conditions exist, as prescribed in the FMLA; or

 

d. Certification of fitness-for-duty prior to returning to work.

 

2. If an employee fails to provide, in a timely manner (fifteen days) requested medical certifications, the College may deny FMLA leave until the employee submits the necessary certifications.

 

3. If an employee fails to provide the requested fitness-for-duty certification for return to work, the College may deny restoration until the employee submits such certification.

 

C. Requesting Leave

 

1. The employee will submit to his/her immediate administrator a completed Certification of Health Care Provider Form WH-380 developed by the Department of Labor.  The form will state the condition requiring leave and an estimate of the period of time needed for the leave.  Requests for FMLA leave should be made 30 days in advance of the leave date, whenever practicable.

 

2. The immediate administrator will review the form for completeness and immediately forward it to the Associate Vice President for Human Resources.

 

3. The Associate Vice President for Human Resources will review the form, determine the appropriateness of the request, and make the final decision regarding approval of FMLA leave.  If an employee submits a completed certification signed by the health care provider, the College may not request additional information; however, a health care provider representing the College may contact the employee's health care provider, with the employee's permission, for purposes of clarification and authenticity of the medical certification.

 

4. The Associate Vice President for Human Resources will  notify the employee and the Unit Vice  President of the status of the request for leave within two workdays of the date it was submitted by the employee. The College can exercise the right to designate FMLA leave with appropriate information without an application from the employee.  Notification to the employee that leave will be designated as FMLA will be provided on the Employer Response Form WH-381.

 

5. The Associate Vice President for Human Resources will arrange with the employee the payment schedule for coverage of the employee's spouse and/or dependents. (See II, Regulations, C. Maintenance of Health Benefits.)

 

6.  When an employee is on paid leave but has not given notice of the need for FMLA leave, the College shall, after a period of ten work days, request that the employee provide sufficient information to establish whether the leave is for a FMLA-qualifying reason.  This does not preclude the College from requesting the information sooner, or any time that an extension is requested.

 

7.  If an absence which begins as other than FMLA leave later develops into an FMLA-qualifying absence, the entire portion of the leave period that qualifies under FMLA may be counted as FMLA leave.

 

8.  Once the College has knowledge that the leave is being taken for an FMLA-required reason, the College must, within two business days absent extenuating circumstances, notify the employee that the leave is designated and will be counted as FMLA leave.  The notice may be oral or in writing, but must be confirmed in writing no later than the following payday. 

V. Definitions

Term Definition

Parent

 A biological or adoptive parent, or an individual who stood in loco parentis (a person who is in the position or place of a parent), to an employee when the employee was a child.

Child

 A son or daughter who is:
  • under 18 years of age, or
  • is 18 years of age or older and incapable of self-care because of a mental or physical disability.

And who is:

  • a biological child,
  • an adopted child,
  • a foster child ( a child for whom the employee performs the duties of a parent as if s/he were the employee's child),
  • a step-child ( a child of the employee's spouse from a former marriage),
  • a legal ward ( a minor child placed by the court under the care of a guardian), or
  • a child of an employee standing in loco parentis (a person who is in the position or place of a parent).

Spouse

 A husband or wife recognized by the state of North Carolina.

Serious health condition (see Form WH-380 for full details)

 An illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves:
  1. Hospital care-inpatient care (i.e. an overnight stay) in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical facility, including any period of incapacity or any subsequent treatment in connection with such impairment;
  2. Absence ( a period of incapacity or more than three consecutive calendar days) plus treatment;
  3. Pregnancy and prenatal care;
  4. Chronic conditions requiring treatments;
  5. Permanent/Long-term conditions requiring supervision;
  6. Multiple treatments.
Health care provider A doctor of medicine or osteopathy who is authorized to practice medicine in North Carolina or any other person determined by statute, credential, or licensure to be capable of providing health-care services which include: podiatrists, dentists, clinical psychologists, clinical social workers, optometrists, nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, chiropractors, and Christian Science practitioners listed with First Church of Christian Scientists in Boston, MA.
Intermittent work schedule A work schedule in which an employee works on an irregular basis and is taking leave in separate blocks of time, rather than one continuous period of time, usually  to accommodate some form of regularly scheduled medical treatment.
Twelve-month period A "rolling" twelve-month period measured backward from the date an employee uses any family and medical leave.
 
 Changes approved by the Board of Trustees on May 5, 2004; Changes approved by Cabinet 3/12/07

 
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