Procedure 5404 - Family and Medical Leave

1. An employee is entitled to twelve (12) work weeks of family/medical leave during any twelve (12) month period. An employee is anyone who was employed by the district and worked on a continuous basis for the previous 52 weeks for at least 1,250 hours, unless otherwise stated in the collective bargaining agreement, of service during those 52 weeks, excluding authorized leave or period of time which persons do not report to work, but have a continuing employment relationship and do not collect unemployment benefits. 

2. The family/medical leave may be taken: (a) because of the birth of a child or to care for a newly placed child: (b) because of the placement of a child with the employee (c) to care for a child or a spouse or parent who has a serious health condition (d) because of the employee's own serious health condition or (E) for reasons related to a family member’s service in the military including qualifying exigency leave or military caregiver leave. If both parents of the child are employed by the district, they together are entitled to a total of twelve (12) weeks of leave, and leave may be granted to only one parent at a time. 

3. Leave taken to care for a newborn or newly placed child must be completed within twelve (12) months after the birth or placement. Leave taken to care for a terminally ill child may be taken only once for any given child. The district may require confirmation by a health care provider of the employee's need for family/medical leave in order to care for the spouse, son, daughter, parent of the employee or the employee himself/herself. 

4. "Child" is defined as a biological, adopted, foster child, stepchild, legal ward or a child of a person standing in loco parentis who is under 18 years of age or incapable of self-care due to a mental or physical disability. A "serious health condition" is one caused by injury, illness, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves (a) inpatient care or (b) continuing treatment by a health care provider. 

5. Health benefits provided under any group health plan will be continued for the duration of the leave and under the conditions that the coverage would have been provided if the employee had continued in employment during the leave. 

6. An employee who plans to take family/medical leave must provide the district with the written notice at least thirty (30) days in advance. Unless the family leave is not foreseeable, in which case the employee must notify the district of the expected leave within one working day of the beginning of the leave. 

7. Upon returning from family/medical leave, the employee is entitled to be returned to the same position they previously held or to an equivalent position with equivalent employment benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment. The district may deny job restoration to a salaried employee who is among the highest ten percent of employees where such denial is necessary to prevent substantial and grievous economic injury to the operations of the district. 

8. Any employee who works principally in an instructional capacity who would be on leave for greater than 20% of the total number of working days in the period during which the leave would extend, may be required to take leave for periods of particular duration not to exceed the duration of the planned medical treatment or to transfer temporarily to an alternative equivalent position that better accommodates the leave. 

9. Any employee who works primarily in an instructional capacity and who requests a period of leave near the conclusion of the academic term, may be required to continue the leave until the end of the term. 

State Paid Family and Medical Leave 

A brief description of the paid family and medical leave benefits program is provided below. The description is not meant to capture every aspect of the program; rather, it is meant to give a general overview. 

1. Paid family and medical leave are benefits administered by the Washington State Employment Security Department. Employees interested in applying for these benefits must follow the process described in Chapter 192-610 WAC. Employees who have questions regarding the application process may contact the Employment Security Department or visit its website at paidleave.wa.gov. The district will post notices made available by the Employment Security Department that provide pertinent information regarding paid family and medical leave benefits. 

2. Employees who have worked the minimum number of hours during the qualifying period may be eligible for paid family and medical leave. 

3. Family leave means leave taken by an employee from work for the following reasons:

• To participate in providing care, including physical or psychological care, for a family member made necessary by a serious health condition of the family member; 
• To bond with the employee’s child during the first 12 months after the child’s birth, or the first 12 months after the placement of a child under the age of eighteen within the employee; or 
• Because of any qualifying exigency as permitted under the federal family and medical leave act for family members as defined by RCW 50A.05.010(10). 

4. Medical leave means any leave taken by an employee from work made necessary by the employee’s own serious health condition as defined by RCW 50A.05.010(20). 

Adoption: