The Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild

TNG-CWA, Local 32035

Guild Education Corner
The Electronic Resource Center of the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild

The Family and Medical Leave Act

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993 provides job security when you need time off to due to your own serious health condition, a family member's serious health condition, to care for a newborn or during placement of an adopted or foster child.

The FMLA covers

• All private employers, including non-profit organization, with 50 or more employees
• All public employers, including federal, state, city, and local agencies and schools

You are eligible for FMLA time off (leave) if all of the following apply:

• You work for a covered employer (employers with 50 or more employees are covered by the FMLA)
• You have worked for this employer for at least 12 months or 52 weeks (the period does not need to be consecutive)
• You have worked at least 1250 hours over the prior 12 months
• You work at a location where 50 or more workers are employed, or where the number of workers within 75 miles is 50 or more.

You may take up to 12 workweeks of unpaid FMLA leave in each 12-month period (16 work weeks in a 24 month period for employees working in the District of Columbia) for the following reasons:

• For a serious health condition that makes you unable to perform your job (medial leave)
• To care for a seriously ill child, spouse, or parent (family leave)
• For childbirth or to care for a newborn child up to age one (childbirth leave and newborn care leave)
• For the placement of a child with you for adoption or foster care (adoption and foster care placement leave)

Your 12 weeks of leave may be taken all at once for one of the above reasons or at different times for different reasons. Your leave may not be denied because of production needs, a busy operating schedule, or because your employer considers your job too important for you to take time off. Nor may your employer order you to perform light-duty work in lieu of medical leave.

FMLA leave does not have to be paid. However, if you have accrued vacation, personal, or sick leave, you may be able to use it during your FMLA absence. Sick leave can be used for the FMLA absence if the leave requested would normally qualify under the employer's sick leave policy.

Serious health conditions include on- and off-the-job injuries and illnesses which incapacitate you or family member for more than three consecutive calendar days, chronic health conditions, and pregnancy. Absences due to serious health conditions are protected even if they are as short as a day or a part of a day. For instance, if you have a chronic back condition, you might have to use one FMLA day in January, six days in March, three days in April, two weeks in July, a half-day in August, and three days in December. When you call in, you do not have to mention FMLA leave, but you do need to indicate that the problem is more serious than a cold or stomach ache. An employee who informs the supervisor that "my daughter is having an asthma attack" or "my back condition is acting up again" has met his or her notification requirement to trigger FMLA protections.

You must be granted a part-time work schedule if necessary because of your own health condition or that of a family member. For example, if your doctor instructs you to work half-time following surgery, your employer is required to follow this schedule for up to 24 weeks (equivalent to 12 full weeks).

FMLA leave cannot be used against you. Your employer may not use FMLA absences as a basis for imposing discipline, giving you a poor evaluation, or denying you advancement. FMLA absences cannot be counted under "no fault" attendance policies.

You must provide at least 30 days' advance notice if your need for FMLA leave is foreseeable. If your leave or absence cannot be anticipated 30 days in advance, you must give notice as soon as practicable. You are obliged to inform your employer about the need for your leave but you do not have to mention the FMLA. Your employer can request certification from your health care provide to verify that your requested leave or unexpected absence is due to a serious health condition.

Your employer must display posters about the FMLA, include information in employee handbooks and, when you take FMLA leave, give you a notice about your specific rights and obligations. In addition, you must be notified within two days if a paid leave is to be designated as an FMLA leave.

During your FMLA leave, group health plan benefits must be maintained as if you had continued to work. If your employer has been paying 100% of your insurance premium, it must continue to pay this amount. If you pay a portion of the premium, this obligation remains.

When you return from FMLA leave, you must be restored to your former position or to an equivalent one with no loss to your seniority or benefits. A position is not equivalent unless it has virtually identical pay, benefits, and working conditions; requires substantially equivalent skills, efforts, and responsibilities; and consists of the same or substantially similar duties. Your right to reinstatement may not apply if a layoff during your leave eliminated your position or if a project you were hired for has been completed.

The FMLA is enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). You or your union can file a complaint at the DOL in person, by letter, or by telephone. Complaints must be filed within two years of the violation; three years are allowed if the violation is willful.

FMLA lawsuits-including collective actions-may be filed in federal or state court. Double damages can be awarded if you have suffered monetary losses.

You may have additional rights under your union contract, state leave law, or workers' compensation statute. If your collective bargaining agreement or state law provides greater benefits than the FMLA, the collective bargaining agreement or the state law applies.

An FMLA violation occurs if an employer:

• Refuses to allow time off for FMLA purposes
• Coerces or intimidates an employee in order to discourage use of FMLA leave
• Discharges, disciplines, or demotes an employee for FMLA absences
• Gives a poor evaluation or denies a promotion because of FMLA absences
• Punishes an employee for complaining about FMLA violations, telling others abut FMLA, or taking legal action to enforce the FMLA
• Fails to continue health benefits during an FMLA leave
• Orders an employee to report to a light duty position during an FMLA leave
• Fails to restore an employee to his or her former position or to an equivalent position after an FMLA leave
• Interferes with or denies any rights provided by the FMLA or its implementing regulations

(Source: Schwartz, Robert M. The FMLA Handbook. Boston: Worker Rights Press, 1999)

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Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, Local 32035 TNG-CWA, AFL-CIO/ 1100 15th St., NW, Suite 350 Washington, DC 20005/ 202-785-3650 /Fax: 202-785-3659

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