You must be granted unpaid leave for any of the following reasons:
  1. The birth of your child or to care for your child after birth (the leave must be completed within 12 months of the birth).
  2. The placement of a child with you for adoption or foster care (the leave must be completed within 12 months of the placement).
  3. To care for your spouse, son or daughter, or parent who has a serious health condition.
  4. In the event of a serious health condition that makes you unable to perform your job.
  5. For a qualifying exigency arising out of your spouse’s, son’s, daughter’s, or parent’s being on active duty in the Armed Forces or being called up for active duty in support of a contingency operation.
  6. To care for a child, parent, or spouse who has suffered an injury or illness during military service that makes the servicemember unable to perform his or her duties (in this case, the usual 12-week FMLA period is extended to 26 weeks within a 12-month period). If you are the nearest blood relative, you may qualify for this FMLA leave even if the injured servicemember is not your child, parent, or spouse.
If you will be taking leave based on any of the above, you may be required to provide your employer with advance notice.
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires covered employers to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave to “eligible” employees for certain family and medical reasons. Certain states may have similar leave laws; however, state laws are not discussed here. For more information on state mandated leaves, contact the Human Resources Department.
For a list of the reasons that enable you to take an FMLA leave, see:
Most employers who employ 50 or more employees during 20 weeks or more of the current or preceding calendar year are required to provide FMLA benefits to their employees.

You are eligible under FMLA if you have worked for a covered employer for at least 12 months and you worked for that employer for at least 1,250 hours during the previous 12-month period.

Note: The right to return to your position or an equivalent position after an FMLA leave is subject to exceptions for certain “highly compensated” or “key” employees. These are salaried, eligible employees who are in the top 10% of highest-paid employees. To see if this affects you, check with the Human Resources Department.

Medical benefits are continued under an FMLA leave.