Disability Management: FMLA
YOUR RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT (FMLA) OF 1993
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (the Lab) complies with the requirements of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act of 1993 (CFRA). These are implemented via the language of the Regulations and Procedures manual (RPM) for unrepresented employees, and the appropriate Articles within the Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) of represented employees.
- Eligibility for Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)/California Family Rights Act (CFRA) Benefit
- Purpose of FMLA Leave:
- Pay
- Length of Leave:
- Advance Notice
- Medical Certification
- Health Benefits
- Reinstatement
- Lab designated FMLA Leave
- Contacts
Eligibility for Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)/California Family Rights Act (CFRA) Benefit:
If you have at least 12 months of service (all prior Lab service counts) and have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the requested leave, you may be covered by the provisions of FMLA, provided you have not had FMLA in the prior 12 months.
- To guarantee the employee may return to a same or similar job after taking time off for an approved medical reason.
- To care for your child after birth or placement by adoption or foster care
- To care for your spouse, child, or parent who has a serious health condition
- For your own serious health condition
- To maintain employee’s health benefits for the first 12 weeks of leave
FMLA leave is an unpaid benefit. You may request or be required to take paid leave (i.e. accrued vacation, sick leave, or extended sick leave) for all or a portion of the unpaid leave in accordance with the appropriate RPM policy or Contractual Bargaining Agreement (CBA). If your leave is for your own serious health condition, you may be eligible, during the unpaid portion of your leave, to temporary disability payments under the University-Paid Disability Plan and/or the Employee-Paid Disability Plan or under the Workers’ Compensation Act.
Under FMLA, you are entitled up to 12 workweeks of leave during a 12-month period which will be counted against your annual FMLA Benefit. A reduced work schedule or leave on an intermittent basis may be granted when medically necessary. Under the Lab’s transitional work assignment (TEAMWork), on an individual case by case basis, employees will be reviewed for the appropriateness of participation in a reduced work schedule. Please contact the Disability Manager at (510) 486-5213 for more details.
Additional leave beyond 12 workweeks may be requested pursuant to State law if you take pregnancy leave that runs concurrently with FMLA/CFRA or pursuant to the Lab’s leave policies and collective bargaining agreements.
30 days advance notice is required if your need for FMLA benefit is foreseeable. If you fail to provide 30 days notice for a foreseeable leave, your department may deny leave until 30 days after the date you provide notice. If your need for leave is not foreseeable, you should provide notice within a reasonable time after learning of the need for leave. Please complete and submit the Employee Request and Authorization for Family and Medical Leave form. The forms are available by calling (510) 486-5213.
Written certification from a health care provider will be required about either you or your family member’s serious health condition. Failure to provide the required certification may result in delay or denial of leave. Recertification of you or your family member’s serious health condition will be required periodically. For this purpose, the Family and Medical Leave Certification form must be completed.
If the leave you have requested is for your own serious health condition, you will be asked to authorize your health care provider to provide your diagnosis. If you fail to disclose your diagnosis, the Lab, at its own expense, may require you to obtain the opinion of a second health care provider. If the second opinion differs from the original certification, a third health care provider will be sought and this opinion will be final and binding. Please review the definition of a "health care provider" as defined on the reverse of the Family and Medical Leave Certification form.
Coverage under any group health plan (medical insurance) will be maintained during the FMLA time period to the same extent had you been actively at work.
After a FMLA absence, you have reinstatement rights to the same or similar position which you had prior to taking the leave. If your position is unavailable, you have no greater right to reinstatement than had you been continuously employed during the FMLA leave period. You are not entitled to reinstatement if your appointment end date occurs before your scheduled return date from family and medical leave. The Laboratory will require periodic notice of your intent to return to work following family and medical leave.
The Lab may designate leave as FMLA leave if it meets the requirements listed above, even when you do not specifically request FMLA or Family and Medical Leave.
Disability Manager:
(510) 486-5213
Disability Assistant:
(510) 486-5922
Return-to-Work Specialist/ADA Coordinator:
(510) 486-4268
Health Services:
(510) 486-6266
Benefits Office:
(510) 486-6403
Payroll:
(510) 486-5825
Liberty Mutual:
(800) 838-4461
