An eligible employee may take leave for up to 12 work weeks for one or more of the following reasons:

• For birth of a son or daughter, and to care for the newborn child;
• For placement with the employee of a son or daughter for adoption or foster care;
• To care for the employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent with a serious health condition;
• Because of a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the essential functions of the employee's job (including treatment related to prenatal care and pregnancy related conditions);
• Because of any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a military member on covered active duty (or has been notified of an impending call or order to covered active duty status);

An eligible employee may take leave for up to 26 workweeks in a single 12-month period to care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness if the employee is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of the covered service member (“military caregiver leave”).

Birth of a son or daughter, and to care for the newborn child:

An eligible employee's entitlement to FMLA leave for birth and bonding expires 12 months after the date of birth. Both mothers and fathers have the right to take FMLA leave for the birth of a child and care of a healthy newborn child (i.e., bonding time). Birth and bonding leave must be taken as a continuous block of leave. Requests for alternatives to a continuous block of leave will be considered on a case-by-case basis and must be approved in advance. To initiate such a request, an employee must contact Absence Management.

For staff employees and academic employees who accrue vacation, University Libraries and Applied Research Lab, the following apply:

• The birth parent must use all available sick leave, as applicable under University Policy HR 34, for the period of incapacity due to pregnancy (usually, but not always, 6 to 8 weeks), and they may elect to use all or part of accumulated vacation, personal holiday, service days, or compensatory time off, as applicable, during the leave prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Non-birth parents may elect to use accumulated family sick days, personal holiday, service days, compensatory time off, and vacation, as applicable, prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Both parents may be eligible for the University Paid Parental Leave that offers four weeks of consecutive paid leave following the birth of the child, within 90 days of the birth date. For more information, please refer to Policy HR106.
• Under certain conditions, employees may be required to substitute paid leave provided and accrued pursuant to applicable policies. All FMLA leave will run concurrently with all University paid or unpaid leave.

For faculty members, the following apply:

• Faculty are eligible for six weeks of paid leave after the completion of one semester of service.
• FMLA will run concurrently with the paid leave and any subsequent unpaid leave.  
• The faculty member will be required to present the supporting documentation for the leave request and should contact Absence Management at least 30 days prior to the planned leave of absence.  
• A faculty member has the option to either take a leave of absence without pay for the rest of the semester or to be relieved of classroom and classroom-related teaching responsibilities at full pay during the semester of the Qualifying Event. 
• For additional information, please refer to HRG18.
   

Placement with the employee of a son or daughter for adoption or foster care

FMLA leave may be taken before the actual placement or adoption of a child if an absence from work is required for the placement for adoption or foster care to proceed. For example, the employee may be entitled to FMLA leave to attend counseling sessions, appear in court, consult with their attorney or the birth parent’s representative, submit to a physical examination, or travel to another country to complete an adoption before the actual date of placement. FMLA leave to bond with a child after placement must be taken as a continuous block of leave. Requests for alternatives to a continuous block of leave will be considered on a case-by-case basis and must be approved in advance. An employee’s entitlement to FMLA leave for the placement of a child for adoption or foster care expires 12 months after the date of placement.

• The employee may elect to use personal holiday, service days, compensatory time off, and accumulated vacation, as applicable, prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Under certain conditions, employees may be required to substitute paid leave provided and accrued pursuant to applicable policies. All FMLA leave will run concurrently with all University paid or unpaid leave.

Care for the employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent with a serious health condition

An eligible employee may take FMLA leave to provide care for their spouse, son, daughter, or parent because of the family member’s serious health condition.   

• The employee shall first use all available family sick days, personal holiday, service days, compensatory time off, and accumulated vacation, as applicable, prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Under certain conditions, employees may be required to substitute paid leave provided and accrued pursuant to applicable policies.  All FMLA leave will run concurrently with all University paid or unpaid leave.

Employee’s serious health condition

An eligible employee is entitled to FMLA leave if a serious health condition (including incapacity due to pregnancy, or for prenatal care) makes the employee unable to perform the functions of their position.  An employee is “unable to perform the functions of the position” where the health care provider finds that the employee is (1) unable to work at all; or (2) unable to perform any one of the essential functions of the employee's position.

An employee who must be absent from work to receive medical treatment for a serious health condition is considered to be unable to perform the essential functions of the position during the absence for treatment.

• The employee shall first use accumulated sick leave, as applicable, following which the employee shall have the option to use or not use all or part of accumulated vacation, personal holiday, service days, or compensatory time off, as applicable, prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Under certain conditions, employees may be required to substitute paid leave provided and accrued pursuant to applicable policies.  All FMLA leave will run concurrently with all University paid or unpaid leave.

Qualifying exigency

Eligible employees are entitled to FMLA leave for a “qualifying exigency” arising from the military deployment of an employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent to a foreign country. Qualifying exigencies for which an employee may take FMLA leave include making alternative child care arrangements for a child of the military member when the deployment of the military member necessitates a change in the existing child care arrangement; attending certain military ceremonies and briefings; taking leave to spend time with a military member on Rest and Recuperation leave during deployment; or making financial or legal arrangements to address a covered military member’s absence; or certain activities related to care of the parent of the military member while the military member is on covered active duty. For FMLA absences related to military exigency leave, a copy of the military member's active duty orders will be required.

• The employee shall first use all accumulated vacation, personal holiday, service days, and compensatory time off, as applicable, prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Under certain conditions, employees may be required to substitute paid leave provided and accrued pursuant to applicable policies.  All FMLA leave will run concurrently with all University paid or unpaid leave.

Military Caregiver Leave

Eligible employees may take up to 26 workweeks of FMLA leave in a single 12-month period to care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness if the employee is the spouse, son, daughter, parent or next of kin of the service member.   Eligible employees of both current service members and certain veterans are entitled to military caregiver leave.

• The employee shall first use all  family sick days, personal holiday, service days, compensatory time off, and accumulated vacation, as applicable, prior to commencement of no-pay status for the balance of the leave.
• Under certain conditions, employees may be required to substitute paid leave provided and accrued pursuant to applicable policies.  All FMLA leave will run concurrently with all University paid or unpaid leave.