Everyone involved in the Family and Medical Leave Act process has certain responsibilities. Below you will find a quick snapshot of those responsibilities:
Employee Responsibilities
- Notify your supervisor when an absence is FMLA-related (failure to do so could mean the absence will count as regular time off)
- You do need to disclose to your supervisor that you are requesting FMLA leave, but you do not have to disclose the reason for the request or medical information to your supervisor. This will be maintained by the ADA/504 Coordinator and is not accessible as personnel records
- Provide at least 30 days’ notice of the need for FMLA leave whenever it is foreseeable or as soon as practical if the need is unanticipated
- Schedule your leave, as much as is possible, to cause the least disruption to your department’s work. Provide an intermittent work schedule to your supervisor for approval as applicable
- Provide the required medical certification from the health care professional or other necessary documentation to support your request for FMLA leave to the ADA/504 Coordinator
- Work with Human Resources Employee Benefits before your FMLA Leave of Absence (or as soon as possible if unanticipated) begins to make any necessary arrangements for benefits and insurance
- Keep your department and the ADA/504 Coordinator updated about any changes needed for approved FMLA leave time
- Report your FMLA leave time in Paycom each pay period and on time (this applies to all employees, including faculty). If you have paid leave time available, you must also enter paid leave for those dates until that is exhausted. If you do not have paid leave time available, the FMLA leave is unpaid. Before taking unpaid leave time, employees must contact human-resources@utulsa.edu and go through an approval process to use unpaid leave time
- Prior to returning to work after FMLA, submit a work release from your health care provider that indicates you are able to perform the essential functions of your job, as well as any stipulations, when required
Supervisor Responsibilities
- Refer employees who need to make FMLA requests or notify the ADA/504 Coordinator of employee absences that may qualify for FMLA
- Approve, track, and ensure reporting of approved FMLA absences for your employees’ time sheets/leave reports in Paycom each pay period and on time. In the event an employee is incapacitated and cannot enter their time in Paycom, the supervisor may need to enter this for the employee
- Ensure that no adverse employment action is taken against an employee for using approved FMLA leave
- For example, make sure discriminatory or retaliatory comments are not made to an employee using FMLA. As some examples, make sure others do not make statements such as, “Enjoy your long weekend;” or, “All your missed work is really causing problems in the department;” or, “We are having trouble keeping up with the workload with all the time you are gone;” or, “People did not used to take this much time off for _____”
- No one should discourage an employee from taking FMLA or ask an employee to delay needed medical treatment or care
- Employees on FMLA Leave of Absence are not “working from home” and should not be contacted for work-related reasons such as providing work information, inviting to meetings, or asking to check emails for work
- Make sure performance reviews are not retaliatory or negative for taking FMLA
- Maintain confidentiality of any information an employee shares with you regarding their FMLA leave. Please note that employees do not have to disclose their reason for requesting FMLA or share medical information with you so be conscientious not to ask questions that imply you are requiring disclosure of confidential medical information. A good statement to use is: “How can I help support you?” Employees do need to disclose their anticipated dates for absences, to the extent they can predict this, so that you can plan for coverage
- Establish a plan to cover an employee’s duties when they are on FMLA leave
- Contact the ADA/504 Coordinator or Human Resources with any questions or for assistance
ADA/504 Coordinator Responsibilities
- Review and respond to requests for leave that may qualify for FMLA promptly, typically within 5 workdays upon receipt of completed requests (request form and certification form)
- Make decisions and provide written outcomes regarding FMLA requests
- Maintain University records of FMLA requests, documentation, decisions, and correspondence separate from employee personnel records
- Provide information and consultation about FMLA leave, requirements, and rights to employees and supervisors
- Assist with training supervisors and employees about FMLA and their responsibilities and rights
Human Resources Responsibilities
- Assist with training supervisors about how to inform employees about FMLA leave and how to make referrals
- Advise supervisors about how to appropriately document and track approved FMLA leave absences
- Provide training about FMLA, requirements and rights to employees and supervisors
- Provide consultation to supervisors regarding FMLA leave and employment
- Track and maintain leave records and provide information to employees about the amount of leave accrued, available, and taken as well as paid and unpaid leave