FMLA

Hi guys!
I don't work in HR but in lending for a bank and am about to use FMLA for maternity leave.

I'm looking for a website to answer a question on the requirement of using paid leave during the allowed 12 week leave. Specifically, my employer is asking that I use my unaccrued vacation time for leave. I understand having to use accrued time, but I'm not sure they can require me to use unaccrued time.

Anyway, I'm looking for any info that will offer clarity on this!

Or, maybe someone else out there has encountered this scenario and can offer some insight. Any help would be appreciated.

Thx, Holly.

I am not an HR guru either, but it's my understanding that a employer can require you to use your accrued leave prior to placing you on unpaid FMLA leave. You also have to be reinstated with the full benefit package that you had prior to the leave taking place. While I reviewed the statute, I did not see it addressing unaccrued leave, but in my reading, I would have to say they are skating on thin ice by requiring you to use unaccrued leave. I don't think that is in the spirit of the law. I would make a call to a local employement attorney for a definitive answer.

Unaccrued vacation time relates to a future benefit which is based on continued employment. To affect this, there has to be a contract of employment either written, verbal or otherwise implied. Outside of the senior officer group, banks typically do not have employment contracts for employees. Therefore, there is no unaccrued vacation benefit to use. Aside from this, FMLA does not provide any language concerning the usage of future benefits. Therefore it cannot be a valid employer requirement or an enforceable provision within the meaning of the law. It doen't make sense to me that Compass would have this type of requirement. Do they try to impose this on male employees as well?

Thanks for the replies. I'm trying to get together info to fight this with! I have put in a call to a higher up in the HR dept for their opinion on using unaccrued time for FMLA leave. All the locations in my are requiring that both men and women who use FMLA use their unaccrued time. I'm hoping that either the "higher up" will come to their senses or that they will provide me with some interpretation of the law that I can question.

Can you believe that I'm the first person to question this?? I'm probably the 5th or 6th one to use FMLA in the last 2 yrs (that I personally know of) and the only one to say - NO! This isn't acceptable! Crazy!

Holly.