Overview
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that provides qualifying associates with a defined amount of job-protected leave each 12-month period. These provisions help you to balance work and family responsibilities by allowing you to take reasonable leave for specific family and medical reasons, or for military leave.
Capital City Bank grants paid or unpaid FMLA leave (depending on the circumstances) for the following events:
- Specific family and medical events – 12 weeks during any rolling 12-month period
- Covered military service members who are on active duty or those called to active duty status – 12 weeks during any rolling 12-month period
- Caring for a covered military service member recovering from an illness or injury – 26 weeks during any rolling 12-month period
Your rights and responsibilities under FMLA are posted in all break rooms and in the Associate Manual.
Intermittent FMLA Leave or Reduced Work Schedule
You may take FMLA leave in 12 consecutive weeks or you may use the leave intermittently by using hours when needed over the course of the rolling-calendar year. Under certain circumstances, you may be approved to use the leave to reduce the workweek or workday, resulting in a reduced work schedule.
The Bank may temporarily transfer you to an available alternative position with equivalent pay and benefits if it would better accommodate the intermittent or reduced schedule in the following instances:
- Yours or a family member's foreseeable and planned medical treatment, including recovery from a serious health condition
- Your use of intermittent leave must be medically necessary
- To care for a child after birth, adoption, or foster care placement
- Your reduced schedule must be approved before you begin any reduced schedule
- Leave must be taken within one year of the birth or placement
See FMLA Filing a Claim for more information.
Eligibility
You must meet both of the following conditions to qualify for FMLA:
- Employed with the Bank for at least 12 months or 52 weeks. Your service need not be consecutive. Separate periods of employment are counted if your break in service is not more than 7 years. For eligibility purposes, working a partial week or being on leave counts as a full week of service.
- Work at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months immediately before the date requested leave begins. Any leave time you've used during the 12 months does not count toward this eligibility standard.
Qualifying Events
FMLA leave can be used in the following circumstances and/or for the following activities:
- Birth of a child and to care for the newborn child
- Placement of a child for adoption or foster care and to care for the new addition to your family
- To care for a seriously ill or injured service member
- A serious health condition that prevents you from performing your role.
More information regarding what constitutes the various qualifying events can be found in the accordions below:
Care for a spouse, minor child or disabled adult child, or parent with a severe health condition.
Federal law defines a child as a biological, adopted, foster, or step child; a legal ward; or a child of a person standing in loco parentis, including persons who:
- Raise a child with the biological parent where you have no legal or biological relationship with the child.
- Raise a child with a same-sex partner where you have no legal or biological relationship with the child.
- Bond with the adopted child of a same-sex partner.
- Take on the responsibility to raise a child without a legal adoption, as grandparents or other relatives.
The Bank may request a statement documenting the existence of a family relationship when you submit a request for leave. Contact your Human Resources Consultant with any questions.
A serious health condition that prevents you from performing the function of your role.
A serious health condition is defined as one or more of the following:
- A condition that requires inpatient care at a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility
- A condition that requires continuing supervision by a licensed health care provider and all of the following:
- Causes incapacity of more than 3 consecutive calendar days
- Requires follow-up treatment or recovery time relating to the same condition that involves one of these:
- 2+ visits to a healthcare provider within 30 days, and one visit to a healthcare provider that results in a regimen of continued treatment under supervision
- An in-person follow-up visit to the healthcare provider within 7 days of the date of condition or medical event, and treatment that includes an examination to determine if a serious health condition exists, and examines the extent of the condition
- A chronic condition that meets one or more of the following conditions:
- Requires 2+ visits a year for treatment by a healthcare provider
- Is continuous over an extended period, including recurring episodes of a single condition
- Causes episodes of incapacity rather than continuing periods
- A permanent or long-term condition
Examples: Heart attacks or other severe heart conditions, most cancers, strokes, appendicitis, pneumonia, asthma, and ongoing pregnancy and prenatal care
Contact your Human Resources Consultant with any questions.
For families of members of the Armed Forces, including the National Guard and Reserves in a qualifying circumstance.
To complete a request for FMLA leave, you must complete the Department of Labor (DOL) Certification form within 15 calendar days, or provide a reasonable explanation for the delay.
To help us comply with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), please do not provide any genetic information when responding to this request for medical information. Genetic information includes:
- An individual's family medical history
- The fact that genetic tests were sought or received
- Results of genetic tests
Medical Certification
Certifying a serious health condition includes:
- Date condition began
- Expected duration
- Diagnosis
- A brief statement of treatment
- If for your condition, a statement attesting to 1 of the following:
- You are unable to perform any kind of work
- You are unable to perform the essential functions of your position
- If for a seriously ill family member, a statement that the patient requires assistance and that your presence would be beneficial or desirable
- If you plan to take intermittent leave:
- The dates and duration of treatment
- A statement of medical necessity for taking intermittent leave or working a reduced schedule
Your selected insurance provider may directly contact your health care provider to authenticate the provided certification information if there are any inconsistencies or deficiencies that cannot be resolved. In compliance with HIPAA Medical Privacy rules, your selected insurance provider will obtain your permission for clarification of individually identifiable health information.
Additional Opinions
If there is a reason to doubt the certification, the Bank, in consultation with your selected insurance provider, may ask for a second, or if necessary, a third opinion at no cost to you. Your selected insurance provider selects the health care provider who conducts the second opinion. In the event, a third opinion is needed, you and your selected insurance provider will decide on the provider jointly.
Military Family Certification
You must certify exigency for Military Family Leave by using the DOL Certification for Qualifying Exigency for Military Family Leave form.
To care for a service member, you must certify using the DOL Certification for Serious Injury or Illness of Covered Service Member form.
Your selected insurance provider provides these forms, upon request, to open a case.
Recertification
Generally, for serious health conditions, your selected insurance provider will ask you to re-certify every 3 to 6 months in connection with an FMLA case.
You may be asked to re-certify for serious health conditions no more frequently than every 30 days unless the circumstances have significantly changed. For example:
- A change of condition occurs
- You, your selected insurance provider, or the Bank receives information casting doubt on the reason given for the absence
- If you seek an extension of the leave period
Requesting FMLA Leave
You are responsible for requesting FMLA leave. To begin, report your need to our FMLA provider (Sun Life) at least 30 days in advance, either verbally or in writing. If you don't provide this notice (except in emergency situations), you may experience delays in beginning your FMLA coverage until the 30 days have passed.
If you become aware you will need FMLA less than 30 days in advance, you must report your need to Sun Life the same or next business day that you learn that you will need leave. In this situation, you must also follow the usual processes for requesting leave.
To report an FMLA leave request, contact Sun Life at:
| Phone | Website |
|---|---|
| 1.888.444.0239 | Sun Life |
Sun Life has assumed all responsibilities related to FMLA, short and long term disability, extended workers' compensation, and military leave.
Notice of Designation
You will receive a written response to your request for FMLA using the Department of Labor (DOL) Designation Notice within 5 business days of submitting a complete and appropriate certification form to Sun Life.
Contact your Human Resources Consultant with any questions.
Returning to Work
To return to work after taking an approved FMLA leave you are asked to provide a fitness for duty (FFD) clearance from a health care provider. The FFD is included in the Bank's response to the FMLA request.
Generally, associates who take FMLA leave are able to return to the same position or to a position with equivalent status, pay, benefits, and other employment terms.
Contact your Human Resources Consultant with any questions.