What is FMLA? Demystifying Maternity Leave and Family Leave Laws

Here at Career Contessa, we love to provide helpful, actionable advice to women throughout their careers. Most of our advice pertains to navigating the workplace—whether that means articles on career transitions, salary negotiation, or being a better manager.

It's admittedly a bit harder to navigate federal and state laws. When we researched the Family and Medical Leave Act, most resources we found were produced by the government. (Meaning they're not necessarily aesthetically pleasing—and they're full of incomprehensible legal jargon.) In this resource, we translate—to the best of our ability—what the FMLA is and what it means for you, as an employee.

Keep in mind, none of us here at Career Contessa are government employees nor lawmakers. Use this as a resource to teach yourself the basics. From there, speak with your HR manager or employer to know your personal qualifications before taking any leave.  

A Quick Summary: 

• What Is FMLA? 
• What Does FMLA Provide?
• Am I Eligible for FMLA? 
• What Are Qualifying FMLA Situations?
• How Do I Request FMLA Leave?
• What Do I Do When My Employer Doesn't Offer Maternity Leave?
• Will I Get Paid During FMLA Leave?
• What is FMLA Abuse?
• FMLA State Resources

What is FMLA?

The Family and Medical Leave Act is a federal labor law that entitles eligible employees to take unpaid, protected leave for family and medical reasons while continuing group health insurance. The Family Medical Leave Act was passed in 1993 to balance the demands of work life and family life.

Eligible employees (we will get into what makes you eligible later) are able to take twelve weeks within a 12-month period for circumstances including:

If your family member is a servicemember in the Armed Forces, there is additional coverage for care. Eligible employees can take twenty-six weeks during a 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember with serious injury or illness. A covered servicemember is a current member of the Armed Forces. Care under FMLA for a covered servicemember includes:

What does the Family and Medical Leave Act provide?

FMLA provides an eligible employee with 12 weeks of unpaid leave each calendar year without the threat of job loss. FMLA also requires that the employer maintains health benefits for the employee as if they were working.

In addition, FMLA ensures that an eligible employee can return to her position as she left it, without the threat of demotion or firing.

Am I eligible for FMLA? When can I use FMLA leave?

This is where things get a little complicated. There are qualifications your employer and you must both meet in order to offer and receive, respectively, FMLA benefits.

Step One: Is Your Employer Required to Comply With FMLA?

To find out if you’re eligible for FMLA, you should first look at your employer. All public agencies must follow FMLA rules. This means that if you’re employed by a public agency, a public or private elementary school, or a public or private secondary school, your employer must provide eligible employees with FMLA.

Private employers must follow FMLA rules if they have employed 50+ employees for at least 20 workweeks during the current or previous year. Pretty clear cut, huh? Not really.

To find out if your employer follows FMLA rules, consult your employer. If you are *pretty sure* your employer should abide by FMLA guidelines, let them know well ahead of any planned leave. Typically, it’s good practice to gather FMLA and paid leave information before onboarding at your next job.

Step Two: Are You Eligible for FMLA?

FMLA only applies to certain employees who work for a covered employer. Once you’ve established that your company does comply with FMLA guidelines, the next step is to find out if you’re personally eligible to FMLA leave.

Covered employees must have worked for the employer for a minimum of 12 months for at least 1,250 hours in that time in order to qualify for FMLA benefits. Employers may use Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) principles to determine whether an employee has completed the requisite 1,250 compensable hours of work.

What Situations Qualify for FMLA Leave?

FMLA exists to provide families with space and time to address care needs, without having to agonize about job security. Certain situations qualify for FMLA:

How do I request FMLA leave? A Timeline

Once you’ve confirmed that your employer is covered and that you qualify for FMLA, it’s time to apply. This process requires several steps from both the employee and the employer.

Will I get paid during FMLA?

In short, no. FMLA only addresses unpaid leave situations. However, family and medical leave benefits can vary on a state level. Some states have enacted their own leave laws—we’ll get into that in a bit.

Aside from state laws, certain companies offer paid maternity leave or paid family leave. As with any company-specific policy, you’ll want to set a meeting to chat with your HR administrator.

WHAT DO I DO WHEN MY EMPLOYER DOESN’T OFFER MATERNITY LEAVE?

Since FMLA only applies to specific companies and specific employees, there’s a chance your unique situation might not be covered. While this can be challenging, there are a few options that can help.

What is FMLA abuse?

Some cynics have been known to call FMLA the “Friday Monday Leave Act” due to the abuse of the benefit. Unfortunately, with any government-mandated “benefit,” there will be employees who abuse it. It’s just how it is.

As an employee (honestly) seeking FMLA, we would advise you to cover your behind to the best of your ability. It’s illegal for an employer to hound you once your FMLA leave has been approved, but it never hurts to keep an open line of communication.

As with any arrangement, communicate the parameters of your leave before actually taking it. Rather than having your employer follow up or bother you for doctor’s notes, details, and dates, take a proactive approach and provide as much information as you possibly can.

Of course, we trust that none of our wonderful readers are committing FMLA fraud. When you’re in the extremely stressful case of familial illness or in the throes of caring for a newborn, the last thing you’re worried about is your employer’s fraud paranoia. Our advice here is to prepare and to communicate when you can.

Federal FMLA + State Family Leave Laws

We already admitted that we aren’t the foremost experts on FMLA, which is why we wanted to make sure we provide easy access to the experts—pulling together a massive list of federal and state resources. To start at a basic level, the Department of Labor will be your best resource.

From there, it might behoove you to check out your state resources on sick leave or maternity leave. Not all states have laws that offer medical leave, but some do, which we've outlined below. For example, California has several laws protecting a mother during pregnancy and even Paid Family Leave (PFL) for either parent (!) to claim after a baby is born or when a family member falls ill. California’s PFL is like FMLA’s cool, generous cousin. Other states, like Connecticut, Minnesota, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont have variations of paid and unpaid family leave.

Like the FMLA stipulations, each state has different eligibility requirements for both employer and employee. Details like who qualifies as an immediate family member also varies, so it’s important to check your state’s resources. The following states are some that offer leave benefits beyond the federal law.

California

Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of paid or unpaid leave through the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). To be eligible, you must either be giving birth to or adopting a child, caring for an immediate family member who is ill, or be seriously ill yourself. Also of note is California’s Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL), which allows certain pregnant employees to take up to 16 weeks of leave, if your employer is eligible.

Connecticut

Connecticut recently passed a law that provides paid leave for eligible employees beginning in January 2022. This applies to employees with “qualifying life events” like childbirth and serious illness, and your employer must also meet eligibility standards. Plus, Connecticut law also allows unpaid leave of up to 16 weeks in a 24-month period for eligible employees.

Hawaii

Hawaii’s Family Leave Law (HFLL) applies to eligible employers (those with over 100 employees who work during 20 or more weeks in a calendar year) and provides unpaid leave of up to four weeks per year to employees who meet the requirements. In general, the requirements are life events like childbirth or adoption and serious illness of the employee or an immediate family member.  

Maine

Maine’s medical leave law offers up to 10 weeks of leave in a two-year period for employees who are experiencing a serious health condition, giving birth or adopting a child under 16 years of age, donating an organ for a transplant, or caring for an immediate family member. It also requires that your employer meet specific eligibility requirements.

Minnesota

Minnesota’s laws are a little different, as they’re broken out into Minnesota Pregnancy and Parental Leave and Sick and Safe Leave. The Pregnancy and Parental Leave Act applies to employees who give birth or adopt a child and consists of up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave. To be eligible, your company must have over 21 employees and you must have worked for your company (at least half time) for a year or more. The Sick and Safe Leave requires eligible employers to provide time off to employees who need to care for an unwell family member or a family member who has been a victim of sexual or domestic abuse.

New Jersey

New Jersey’s Family Leave Act allows certain employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave if they are leaving to give birth or adopt a child (within one year of the child’s birth or adoption) or care of a family member with a serious illness. It also requires that your employer meet certain specifications and that you are employed by them for a year or more. New Jersey law also requires that employers offer paid sick leave that “meets or exceeds the requirements of the law.” This applies to part-time and full-time employees.  

New York

New York offers a strong paid family leave program. It applies to “most employees who work in New York State for private employers.” To be eligible, you must work for your employer for 26 consecutive weeks for 20 or more hours as a full-time employee or for 175 days (non-consecutive) for as a part-time employee. Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of paid family leave for childbirth, adoption, foster care placement, care of an unwell family member, or assisting a relative who is a servicemember.  

Oregon

Oregon is set to begin providing paid family leave in 2023. For now, the state offers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave if your company has 25 or more employees and you meet eligibility requirements. These include childbirth, adoption, foster placement, a health condition of you or an immediately family member, pregnancy complications, military family leave, and bereavement leave.

Rhode Island

The Rhode Island Parental and Family Medical Leave (RIPFML) gives eligible employees up to 13 weeks of leave in a two-year period. Life events that meet the requirements are childbirth, adoption, foster placement, care for a sick family member, or a serious illness. The program also offers up to 10 hours in a one-year period for your child’s specific school activities. Rhode Island also offers Temporary Caregiver Insurance, which gives up to four weeks of leave for eligible employees who are giving birth, adopting, providing foster care to a child, or caring for a sick family member.

Vermont

Vermont provides Parental Leave, Family Leave, and Short-Term Family Leave. Their Parental Leave Law provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to eligible employees during pregnancy, birth, or adoption of a child 16 years old or younger. The Family Leave Law provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for eligible employees who are seriously ill or are caring for a family member who is seriously ill. Their Short-Term Family Leave option provides up to four hours in a 30-day period of unpaid leave to attend a child’s school activities, routine medical appointments, or for medical emergencies.

Washington

Washington now offers paid family leave that eligible employees can take for childbirth, adoption, foster care placement, care of a sick family member, or to spend time with a family member who is about to be deployed. Their guidelines state that “nearly every Washington worker can qualify for paid leave as long as you worked a minimum of 820 hours in Washington over the last year.”

Washington, DC

Washington, DC offers paid leave to eligible employees of up to eight weeks for childbirth or adoption, six weeks to care for a sick family member, and two weeks to care for yourself if you fall ill. The state also requires eligible employers to provide up to 16 weeks of unpaid family leave and 16 weeks of unpaid medical leave during a two-year period.

Wisconsin

The Wisconsin Family and Medical Leave Act provides up to six weeks of leave for birth or adoption to eligible employees, as well as two weeks for poor health conditions of the employee and two weeks for poor health conditions of an immediate family member.

For more details specific to each state, here’s an exhaustive list: 

Other FMLA Resources:

We want to make sure this is a reliable, useful piece of content. Did we miss anything or do you feel that something is grossly inaccurate? Get in touch with us at [email protected] with any edits or suggestions!