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Policy 614 - Family and Medical Leave

614. Family and Medical Leave

Statement

Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, as amended (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act, as amended (CFRA), an employee will be granted a family or medical leave in accordance with the requirements of applicable state and federal law in effect at the time the leave is granted. This policy is intended to provide an overview of the University’s and the employee’s rights and responsibilities, but in no way is intended to diminish the obligations set forth under federal and state law, or to increase the obligations set forth under applicable federal and state law except where expressly provided for in this policy. To the extent permitted by law, any leave of absence that is granted to an employee under this policy or any other policy for a purpose specified above shall be credited against the applicable 12-week or 26-week limit contained in this policy.

Eligibility

To be eligible for family and medical leave benefits, an employee must:

Qualifying Family and Medical leaves

Eligible employees may receive up to a total of 12 work weeks of leave during a rolling 12-month period for one or more of the reasons listed below:

  • An employee's own serious health condition that renders the employee unable to perform the functions of their job
  • Incapacity due to the employee’s own pregnancy or childbirth (provided, however, that CFRA leaves shall not run concurrently with pregnancy disability leaves - please refer to the Pregnancy Disability policy)
  • Birth of the child of the employee, or the child of the employee’s spouse or registered domestic partner,  or placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care. 
    • Family and medical leave must be completed within one year of the birth or placement.
    • If both parents of a newborn or newly-placed child are Santa Clara University employees working in the same department, leave will be granted to only one parent at a time. 
  • Care for the following family members with a serious health condition: spouse, registered domestic partner, parent, parent-in-law, child, child of registered domestic partner, sibling, grandparent, grandchild or designated person. 
    • “Parent” will include an individual who stood in loco parentis to the employee, meaning they were in the role of a parent to the employee when the employee was a child. 
    • A “designated person” is an individual, identified by the employee at the time leave is requested, who is related by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. An employee is limited to one designated person per 12-month period under this policy. 
  • A qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee's spouse, son, daughterregistered domestic partner, child, or parent is on active duty, or has been notified of an impending call to active duty status, in support of a contingency operation.

Eligible employees may receive up to 26 weeks in a single 12-month period to care for a spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin who is a covered service member and is recovering from a serious illness or injury sustained in the line of duty on active duty request.

Additional leave may be granted as an accommodation in a manner consistent with applicable federal and state law.

Under some circumstances, employees may take family and medical leave intermittently, which means taking leave in blocks of time, or by reducing their normal weekly or daily work schedule.

Process

Notice and Certification Requirements

Employees seeking to use family and medical leave are responsible for providing their supervisor and the Department of Human Resources with at least 30 days advance notice when the need for the leave is foreseeable. Employees are also responsible for providing the required completed forms regarding their request for a family and medical leave to the Department of Human Resources, or the University’s third party leave of absence administrator. Such forms may include medical certification (both prior to the leave and prior to reinstatement). Employees may also be required to provide periodic recertification and periodic reports during the leave, as applicable.

Employees requesting a family or personal medical leave should contact their Benefits Specialist in the Department of Human Resources regarding their individual situations and to get information regarding the specific notification and approval requirements for their leave. For purposes of short and/or long term disability, all medically related leaves are subject to approval by the appropriate plan provider.

Compensation During Leave

Family and medical leave is generally unpaid. And employee may choose to use their accrued sick and/or vacation, in coordination with State or Voluntary Disability Insurance, Worker's Compensation, Social Security Disability and the Santa Clara University Long Term Disability plan, as applicable

Responsibility

Employees should inform supervisors or the Department of Human Resources whenever they need leave for a reason that may be covered by this policy.  Supervisors will promptly notify the Department of Human Resources of any request by an employee for leave.  The Department of Human Resources is responsible for the interpretation and administration of this policy.

Resources

Please refer to the Pregnancy Disability (622) and Industrial Disability (615) leave policies for procedures related to specific leave applications. Contact Human Resources if you have questions or if you would like more information regarding leaves of absence.


Policy Approved: October 23, 1998

Last Updated: January 1, 2024

Last Reviewed: January 1, 2024

Maintainer: Human Resources

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