Family Medical Leave Laws

California and federal laws provide numerous leaves for employees. Below are just a few of the main medical leave laws that affect today’s employees.

California Family Rights Act

The Fair Employment and Housing Act contains family care and medical leave provisions for California employees. These leave provisions, known as the California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”), cover employers who do business in California and employ 50 or more part-time or full time employees. All such employers must provide information about the CFRA provisions to their employees and post this information in a conspicuous place where employees tend to gather. Employers who provide employee handbooks must include information about CFRA leave in the handbook.

To be eligible for CFRA leave, an employee must have more than 12 months of service with the employer and have worked at least 1,250 hours for that employer in the 12-month period before the leave begins.

An eligible employee may take an unpaid leave for several reasons, including: to bond with an adopted or foster child or to bond with a newborn; to care for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition; or for the employee’s own serious health condition. Full-time employees may take leave of up to 12 work weeks in a 12-month period. Part-time employees may take leave on a proportional basis. The leave does not need to be taken in one continuous period of time.

Employers are not required to pay employees during a CFRA leave. An employer may require an employee to use accrued vacation time or other accumulated paid leave other than sick time. If the CFRA leave is for the employee’s own serious health condition, the use of sick time can be required. If the employer provides health benefits under a group plan, the employer must continue to make these benefits available during the leave. The employee is also entitled to accrual of seniority and participation in other benefit plans.

After CFRA leave, employees are guaranteed a return to the same or comparable position and can request the guarantee in writing. If the same position is no longer available, such as in a layoff or closure, the employer must offer a position that is comparable in terms of pay, location, job content, and promotional opportunities, unless the employer can prove that no comparable position exists. An employee is not entitled to reinstatement if the employee would have been otherwise laid off or terminated.

Pregnancy Disability Leave

California law makes it an unlawful employment practice for employers with five (5) or more employees to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work, as set forth in the commission's regulations. Further, the employee shall be entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. Reasonable period of time means that period during which the female employee is disabled on account of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.