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What Is the Family and Medical Leave Act?
The Family and Medical Leave Act is a federal labor law that requires covered employers to provide eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave with assurance of […]
The Family and Medical Leave Act is a federal labor law that requires covered employers to provide eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave with assurance of job protection throughout the leave period. The law applies to all companies with at least 50 employees, public agencies, and public or private elementary and secondary schools. FMLA enables employees to take reasonable leave for covered medical and family reasons while upholding equal employment opportunities for everyone. Additionally, the law requires employers to maintain group health benefits for those employees during their unpaid leave.
Per the law, employees who are eligible for FMLA are entitled to receive twelve workweeks of leave in 12 months for the following reasons:
- A serious health condition that prevents employees from performing essential functions of their job
- The birth of a child or to care for the newborn within one year of the birth
- Providing care for the employee’s child, spouse, or parent with a serious health condition
- Placement with an employee of a child for foster care or adoption and to provide care for a newly placed child within one year of the placement
- Qualifying circumstances based on the employee’s spouse, daughter, son, or parent as a military member on covered active duty
Employees are also entitled to receive twenty-six workweeks of leave during a 12-month period if they need to provide care for a covered member of the U.S. armed forces with a serious condition or injury. This applies if the eligible employee is the service member’s spouse, daughter, son, parent, or next of kin. Ultimately, FMLA ensures that employees can take the time they need to care for themselves or loved ones without the risk of losing their jobs. Since its implementation in 1993, FMLA has had a significant impact on the lives of millions of employees and their families.
Sources
“Family and Medical Leave (FMLA)”. U.S. Department of Labor. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla
