Signed into law by President Bill Clinton—with strong support and activism from Unions—the FMLA allows employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected, unpaid leave to care for a newborn, a newly adopted child, ill family member or an employee’s own medical leave. (The California Family Rights Act, the state’s version of family and medical leave legislation, roughly mirrors FMLA.)

You are eligible for FMLA if you:

• Work for an employer with 50 or more employees
• Have worked for that employer for at least 12 months
• Have accrued at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months prior to starting FMLA leave

Employees may take 12 weeks of unpaid, protected leave to:

• Treat or recover from a serious health condition that makes you unable to perform your job
• To care for a child, spouse, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, or parent-in-law suffering from a serious health condition
• Care for/bond with a newborn or new adopted/foster child.

Covered conditions under FMLA:

• Injuries or illness that involve medical treatment and incapacitate you or a family member for three or more days or involve a hospital stay of at least one night.
• Incapacity resulting from chronic ailments — like migraines, asthma, pregnancy, diabetes, orthopedic conditions — even episodes as short as one day or part of a day.

You may take time off intermittently or by reducing scheduled days/hours.

Your employer may not deny you time off because of production needs or because you hold an important position. Your employer may request a certification prepared by your health care provider verifying that your leave is for a purpose recognized by FMLA. Your employer must maintain your health insurance.

Your employer does not have to maintain your salary, but must permit and can require you to use paid leave (such as PTO, vacation, or sick time) during the time you are off work.

You may not be warned, suspended or discharged for taking FMLA time off. If you know in advance you need to take FMLA time off, you do need to inform your employer as soon as practical.

When your leave is completed, your employer must restore you to your regular job or to an equivalent position with the same pay, benefits, duties, status, terms and conditions. SEIU Local 121RN can assist you in understanding your rights and how to enforce them, including through government agencies or the grievance process.

For full information on FMLA and other unpaid or partially paid leave, contact your Union Representative. For assistance or to file a complaint with the Department of Labor, please contact your SEIU Local 121RN steward or Union Representative. If you do not know who your Union Representative is, click or tap For Members in the menu, then Your Hospital. You may also call our main office at (626) 639-6200.

With Labor Unions pushing for it, California was the first state in the country to pass a paid family leave law in 2002. We remain one of the only states to offer paid leave (also known as Family Temporary Disability Insurance).

California law allows employees to take partially paid family leave, concurrent with their FMLA/CFRA leave. This paid family leave program allows employees to take up to six weeks off to care for a newborn, a newly adopted child, or ill family member.

Under this law, employees are eligible to receive 60-70% of their wages during their absence, up to a maximum of $1,216 per week. (It should be noted that PFL money is not from the employer, but from the state – employees apply for it the way they would apply for state disability benefits.)

California State Law requires employers with 25 or more employees to allow parents to take up to 40 hours off work each calendar year to participate in the school activities of their child, ward or custodial grandchild. Time off may not exceed eight (8) hours in any calendar month.

Employees must give reasonable notice of the planned absence, and if requested by the employer, provide proof of participation in a school activity on the specified date and time. The employer may not discharge or in any way discriminate against an employee who takes time off for school events.

Employees can also use time off under this law to handle school or child care emergencies, including behavioral or discipline problems. The employee must still give notice of the need to be off work.

California law allows employees time off to vote if they do not have sufficient time to vote outside of working hours.

The time off will normally be scheduled at the beginning or end of the shift, but the employer and employee can mutually agree on a different arrangement.

Employees can take off as much time as they legitimately need to vote, but only 2 hours of that time will be paid. The employee must give two working days notice to the employer.