The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows employees covered by the law to take leave from their job in the event of a family or medical emergency/ In order to be eligible for FMLA and the leave it provides by law, an employee must meet the following criteria.
An employee eligible for FMLA must:
- Have worked for their employer at least 12 consecutive months, at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months and work at a location where their employer employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles during 20 or more calendar workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year; and
Have a qualifying reason for leave which includes:
- The birth of a son or daughter of the employee and in order to care for such son or daughter.
- The placement of a son or daughter with the employee for adoption or foster care.
- To care for a spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent, of the employee with a serious health condition. that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of their job
- Any qualifying exigency arising from the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a military member on covered active duty. Qualifying exigencies can include making child care arrangements for the child of the service member military member when the deployment of the military member necessitates a change in the existing childcare or care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness.