Coverage and Eligibility

• The FMLA applies to all government agencies and any private business with at least 50 employees who work 20 weeks a year.
  Along with having to work somewhere meeting the coverage criteria, employees who take FMLA leave must have worked for the employer for at least one year and for at least 1,250 hours over the previous year.
  
  

Entitlement

• Employees can take off time for the birth of a child, if they adopt or take in a foster child; to take care of a spouse, child or parent with a serious health problem; if they have a serious health condition that prevents them from doing their jobs.
  In some cases, employees can intermittently take off time. They can also use paid sick days in lieu of the unpaid time off.
  
  

Protection

• Under the FMLA, employers must hold jobs open for their employees while they are on leave. Employers that cannot hold jobs open must have equal ones available for their employees when they return.
  Employers must also return all health insurance benefits to employees when they return. Employees on leave can either pay premiums while gone or when they return, under the act.
  
  

Notice

• The Family and Medical Leave Act requires employees to formally notify their employers at least 30 days before they leave. If it is an emergency, employees must notify their employers as soon as possible.
  
  

Certification

• Employers are allowed, under the Family Medical Leave Act, to request employees to provide medical certification before they leave to take care of a family member. Federal certification forms inquire about the nature of the person's illness, when the person became sick, what types of treatments are available for the illness and how long the employee will be gone, among other questions.
  
  

Exemptions

• Employers can fire an employee on FMLA leave if the employee's position meets certain criteria as a "key" position. Key employees, as the FMLA defines them, are salaried and within the top 10 percent of the highest paid employees in the organization who live within 75 miles of the business.
  The company must be able to prove that leaving the position open would be economically detrimental. In these cases, employers must notify the employees on leave that they have "key" positions and that the company plans to fill the position. Employers must explain their reasons for the decision and, if a reasonable job opens for the employee, the company must consider rehiring him.