Michigan FMLA And Leave Law Guidelines And Requirements

The Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that applies to employer organizations with 50 or more employees for 20 or more workweeks in the current or previous calendar year.

The Family & Medical Leave Act does not take the place of other sources of leave, including Michigan's FMLA and other state leave laws. To the extent an organization subject to the FMLA is also subject to a state leave law, it must comply with both the FMLA and the state leave law.

The challenge in coordinating compliance with federal and state law is that the state leave laws may differ from FMLA law in employee eligibility criteria, as well as the length and type of protection.

Michigan's FMLA And Other Leave Laws

Who Is Covered by FMLA in Michigan?

FMLA covers only those employees who work at a company with more than 50 employees for at least 20 weeks of the year. Employees must also:

• Work in a place that has at least 50 employees within 75 miles
• Have been employed by the company for at least one year
• Have put in at least 1,250 hours in the previous year

Reasons for FMLA Leave in Michigan

Even if an employee qualifies to take FMLA, they need a reason for doing it. One of the most common reasons for taking FMLA is childbirth or adoption. FMLA is not technically maternity leave, but it functions similarly, allowing any parent to take time off to bond with a new child. That includes kids of any age who are new to a family, as well as people becoming new foster parents to older children.

FMLA also allows leave for someone recovering from a severe health condition. For instance, someone undergoing chemotherapy for cancer treatment might take FMLA. An employee also can take FMLA to care for a family member with a serious illness. If a child needs a kidney transplant or a spouse has suffered a stroke, the worker qualifies for FMLA. Employees can take time to look after an ailing parent as well.

Only certain relatives qualify for FMLA care protections. If an employee has a sibling or grandparent who gets sick, they can't take FMLA to care for them. Domestic partners of either sex also do not qualify — the person must be married for FMLA to kick in.

Finally, there are two instances related to the military that may qualify someone for FMLA. The first is if a family member's service overseas causes "qualifying exigencies." Essentially, if a deployment creates issues that need to be taken care of within the family, the employee can take FMLA to do things such as:

• Seek counseling
• Set up child care
• Go to military events
• Spend quality time with a soon-to-deploy or recently returned family member

The second military-related instance where an employee can take FMLA is when a family member in the service has sustained a severe injury that requires care.

Other Michigan Leave Laws

In addition to the federally-mandated FMLA rules, Michigan employers must comply with additional state leave laws, including the Michigan Paid Medical Leave Act. According to, and excerpted from, https://www.govdocs.com/michigan-passes-new-paid-leave-law-with-posting-requirement, this leave may be used for:

• The employee's or employee's family member's mental or physical illness, injury or health condition, including medical diagnosis, care or treatment and preventative medical care
• Medical or psychological care for physical or psychological injury or disability resulting from domestic violence or sexual assault, to obtain legal services or participate in related court proceedings
• Closure of the employee's primary workplace or child's school or daycare due to a public health emergency or if the employee or family member has been quarantined

How To Determine Whether FMLA Guidelines Or State Guidelines Apply In Michigan

Here are some guidelines if your organization is subject to both FMLA and Michigan leave law:

• If an eligible employee wishes to take a leave that is covered under both the state leave law and the FMLA, then generally the leave can be run concurrently. In other words, it can be counted towards satisfying the requirements under both state and federal law simultaneously
• If an eligible employee wishes to take a leave covered under the FMLA, but not also covered under the state leave law, that leave can only count towards satisfaction of the FMLA requirements. The total amount of leave available under the state law would still be available to that employee
• If an eligible employee wishes to take a leave covered under the state leave law, but not also covered under the FMLA, that leave can only count towards satisfaction of the state leave law. The total amount of leave available under the FMLA (e.g., 12 weeks or 26 weeks) would still be available to the employee

Note: The above is excerpted from our FMLA Training & Certification Program. Click to read some additional FMLA compliance tips from this course:

• About-FMLA-Intermittent-Leave
• About-FMLA-Return-To-Work

Recommended Training For Michigan's FMLA Requirements

From seminars to webinars to online courses, HRTrainingCenter offers a variety of FMLA compliance training courses. Here is just some of what you will learn from our FMLA training classes:

• FMLA rules on who is covered - and why
• Employer posting requirements
• Intermittent FMLA leave guidelines
• Notification rules and requirements
• Tracking leave, including tips for FMLA intermittent leave
• How to identify patterns, trends, and leave abuse history
• The most common abuses of FMLA
• What needs to be included in your FMLA and ADA policies

Simply select one of our 'Recommended Courses' or use the search box to find your desired FMLA training course.

• Certificate Program In FMLA, ADA, Compliance
• FMLA Training & Certification Program
• How To Identify And Investigate FMLA Abuse
• Integrating FMLA, ADA, COBRA, And Workers' Compensation Training & Certification Program

To find other FMLA training courses, use the search box below.