COORDINATION OF SICK LEAVE WITH THE FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE ACT. The Family Medical Leave Act provides eligible employees with up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave. If an employee has accrued paid leave (e.g., vacation, sick leave, personal leave), the employee must use any qualifying paid leave first. "Qualifying paid leave" is leave that would otherwise be available to the employee for the purpose for which the FMLA leave is taken. The remainder of the 12 workweeks of leave, if any, will be unpaid FMLA leave. Any paid leave used for an FMLA qualifying reason will be charged against an employee's entitlement to FMLA leave. This includes leave for disability or workers' compensation injury/illness, provided that the leave meets FMLA requirements. The substitution of paid leave for unpaid leave does not extend the 12 workweek leave period. If Human Resources determines that time off which is being charged to the employee’s accrued sick leave so qualifies, the time will also be charged against the employee’s eligible FMLA leave beginning on the fourth consecutive day of absence. This automatic classification of paid sick leave as FMLA leave can occur whether or not the employee has requested FMLA leave according to procedures. The District will notify the employee that leave has been designated as FMLA leave. The District may provisionally designate the employee's leave as FMLA leave if the District has not received medical certification or has not otherwise been able to confirm that the employee's leave qualifies as FMLA leave. If the employee has not notified the District of the reason for the leave, and the employee desires that leave be counted as FMLA leave, the employee must notify Human Resources Department within 2 business days of the employee's return to work that the leave was for an FMLA reason.
