What is Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)?
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. It also requires that their group health benefits be maintained during the leave.
FMLA is designed to help employees balance their work and family responsibilities by allowing them to take reasonable unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons. It also seeks to accommodate the legitimate interests of employers and promote equal employment opportunity for men and women.
FMLA applies to all public agencies, all public and private elementary and secondary schools, and companies with 50 or more employees. These employers must provide an eligible employee with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year for any of the following reasons:
- For the birth and care of the newborn child of an employee;
- For placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care;
- To care for an immediate family member (i.e., spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition; or
- To take medical leave when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.
Employees are eligible for leave if they have worked for their employer at least 12 months, at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months, and work at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles. Whether an employee has worked the minimum 1,250 hours of service is determined according to FLSA principles for determining compensable hours or work.
FMLA with Unum Total Leave
King Arthur Baking has partnered with Unum as our administrator for FMLA/Leave of Absence. To apply and manage your leave status please login to portal.unum.com
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Illness, Surgeries & Off the Job Accidents
Accident – an injury that happens unexpectedly, without a deliberate plan or cause resulting in Disability.
Illness – sickness, disease, pregnancy or complications resulting from pregnancy.
Accident:
If a participating employee becomes disabled due to an accident/injury (off the job), they are eligible to receive benefits on the first (1st) day of the disability due to accident/injury. Please also be aware that the payment for this type of disability will vary based on the type of injury sustained.
Illness:
If a participating employee becomes disabled due to illness (including pregnancy), they are eligible to receive benefits on their eighth (8th) day of disability due to the illness. Please note that PTO will be applied (if available) for the waiting period, which is the length of time from the 1st day of disability due to illness to the 8th day when the benefit payments will begin.
Please note: surgeries also follow the same rules as illness for the purposes of short term disability coverage.
Maternity Leave
Maternity leave is included in the same category as illness for the purposes of short term disability and so an eligible employee who will be going on maternity leave will also have a waiting period, where the benefit does not begin payment until the eighth (8th) day of the maternity leave. King Arthur Baking automatically applies PTO to cover the first 7 days while waiting for the disability benefit to start. But employees also have the option to apply parental leave time as well. Please read the next section below for more information on parental leave.
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Parental Leave
To assist employees in managing the demands of growing families and to provide bonding time with their children, eight weeks of paid parental leave is available to employee-owners of all genders for the birth, or adoption of a child. The leave may be used all at once, or intermittently during the first 12 months following the child’s birth, or adoption. For regular part-time employees, the eight weeks of leave is paid based upon the average weekly hours paid in the four week preceding the leave. In the case of someone who is already out on leave, parental leave would be based on the average of the four weeks prior to any leave of absence.
To be eligible for paid parental leave, an employee must have worked at King Arthur Baking Company for at least six months prior to the birth, or adoption, and be a year-round full or part-time employee. Reasonable advance notification of the intention to take parental leave is required and is subject to manager approval.
In addition to paid parental leave, the employee-birth parent will receive 100% salary continuation during the disability period. The disability period is often 6-8 weeks, but the disability varies by person, and our short-term disability carrier works with the employee’s provider to determine the length of the disability portion of the leave. If the primary caregiver did not birth the child, he or she will receive the minimum of five weeks of 100% salary continuation (in addition to the eight weeks of parental leave).
Scheduling changes taken in connection with intermittent parental leave require prior management approval. If the need for leave is unforeseen, such as when a child becomes available for adoption, notice must be given as soon as the need for leave is known. Paid parental leave must be taken within 12 months of the birth of a child or placement of a child for adoption. Children must be under the age of 18 unless they are over the age of 18 and incapable of self-care due to a disability.
Paid parental leave under this policy does not cover time away from work for the adoption of a spouse’s or partner’s child or the temporary placement of a child in foster care.
If both parents work for King Arthur Baking Company and are eligible, both may take the full allowance of parental leave. Where legally permissible, paid parental leave will run concurrently with other types of leave the employee may qualify for, including, but not limited to, Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and/or The Vermont Parental and Family Leave Act. Approval decisions under this policy remain in KAB’s sole discretion. This policy will be applied prospectively and is effective immediately.
Eligibility
Employee-owners who are regularly scheduled to work 30 or more hours per week on a continuing basis are eligible for this employer paid coverage.
Benefit Details
Long Term Disability benefits are provided at no cost to eligible employee-owners and are administered through Unum. Disability benefits provide income protection for any non-work related illness or injury. Payments may be reduced if you are receiving benefits from Worker’s Compensation, Social Security, other disability or retirement benefits, or wages from employment. Long Term Disability benefits are considered taxable income.
Long Term Disability
- Benefit pays 60% of your pre-disability earnings to a maximum of $6,000 per month (minimum monthly benefit is $50).
- Employees must be disabled for 90 days before benefits are paid.