Family Care Leave

Seattle Pacific University recognizes the importance of supporting employees who need time away to care for family members with serious health conditions. This policy outlines SPU’s practices in conjunction with federal and state leave laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML), the Washington State Family Care Act, and Seattle’s Paid Sick and Safe Time ordinance.

Applicable Leave Programs and Job Protections

FMLA Leave
Eligible employees may take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition. Leave must generally be completed within 12 months of the qualifying event.

Washington PFML
Eligible employees may receive paid, job-protected leave through WA PFML for qualifying family care reasons. This leave can run concurrently with FMLA.

SPU Sick Time

Eligible employees may be able to use SPU sick time to care for a family member’s serious health condition.

Family Care Qualifying Leave Reasons

Leave may be taken to care for a:

·       Child with a health condition.

·       Spouse, parent, parent-in-law, or grandparent with a serious health condition or emergency condition.

Definitions

Emergency condition: A sudden, generally unexpected health occurrence demanding immediate action, typically very short-term in nature.

Health Condition Requiring Treatment or Supervision:

·       Any medical condition requiring treatment or medication that the child cannot self-administer.

·       Any medical or mental health condition that would endanger the child's safety or recovery without the presence of a parent or guardian.

·       Any condition warranting treatment or preventive health care such as physical, dental, optical, or immunization services, when a parent must be present to authorize and when sick leave may otherwise be used for the employee’s own preventive health care.

Incapable of self-care: When an individual requires active assistance or supervision to provide daily self-care in several "activities of daily living" (ADL) or "instrumental activities of daily living" (IADL). ADLs include activities such as grooming, hygiene, bathing, dressing, and eating. IADLs include cooking, cleaning, shopping, using transportation, paying bills, maintaining a residence, and using communication tools.

Physical or mental disability: A physical or mental impairment that limits one or more activities of daily living or instrumental activities of daily living.

Serious Health Condition: An illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves any period of incapacity or treatment connected with inpatient care (e.g., overnight stay in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility), or continuing treatment by or under the supervision of a healthcare provider that includes any period of incapacity.

Family Members defined

·       Child: Biological, adopted, or foster child; stepchild; legal ward; or child for whom the employee stands in loco parentis, who is under 18 years of age or over 18 and incapable of self-care due to a disability.

·       Spouse: Husband or wife.

·       Parent: Biological parent or individual who stood in loco parentis when the employee was a child.

·       Parent-in-law: Parent of the employee’s spouse.

·       Grandparent: Parent of the employee’s parent.

Medical Certification

A medical certification from a licensed health care provider may be required to confirm the need for family leave. Failure to provide required certification may result in denial of leave or non-payment of accrued time.

Use of Accrued Leave for Family Care

Eligible employees who accrue sick and/or vacation leave may use a portion of these balances to supplement PFML wage replacement payments.

·       The amount of accrued leave used to supplement PFML will be 30% of the employee’s weekly income. Supplementing from sick leave may be used if the employee has been approved for PFML leave to care for a family member’s serious illness.

·       If an employee elects not to use WA State PFML, they may use their own sick/vacation at 100% wage replacement for an approved family care leave.

·       Family Care Leave must be requested through Workday’s Absence request process.

Benefits During Leave

During any FMLA approved leave, the University will maintain the employee's medical, dental, vision, flexible spending, life and disability insurance coverage on the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had been continuously working during the entire leave period. The University and the employee will each continue to pay their portion of the benefit costs. In some instances, the University may recover premiums it paid to maintain health coverage for an employee who fails to return to work from FMLA leave.

During a continuous FMLA leave, sick leave and vacation leave will continue to accrue only during that portion of the leave which is paid by means of a substitution (i.e., SPU paid leave such as maternity leave, sick days, vacation days). During any continuous unpaid FMLA leave (not paid by a substitution), sick leave and vacation leave will not accrue. For those persons returning from any continuous unpaid FMLA leave, accrual of vacation leave and sick leave will resume the first pay period which follows or coincides with the date the individual returns to active work. Where the FMLA leave is taken on an intermittent basis or as a reduced-schedule, sick leave and vacation leave will continue to accrue during the leave for any hours worked or paid by means of substitution (SPU paid leave, sick/vacation supplement to PFML).

Limitations and Exclusions

1. Use of paid leave as a supplement to PFML will be taken at a rate of 30% of weekly pay, unless electing not to use PFML.

2. Leave must comply with all SPU notification, certification, and documentation requirements to qualify for job protection and/or supplemental use.

3. The use of supplemental leave with WA PFML wage replacement is not intended to exceed 100% of an employee’s regular weekly earnings. However, because WA PFML benefit amounts are not shared with SPU, there is a possibility that may occur. SPU will review and analyze leave programs on an annual basis to ensure responsible financial stewardship and to minimize the potential for employees receiving payments that exceed their regular earnings. Based upon those findings, changes to the amount of supplemental pay an employee is allowed to use may be changed.