FMLA is a federal law which provides job protection and benefits continuation to eligible employees (APS 45.5).

Qualifying Reasons for Family and Medical Leave

FMLA may cover employees for up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave during the applicable 12-month period because of:

  • An employee’s own serious health condition, that makes the employee unable to perform the essential functions of their job
  • Care for an eligible family member’s serious health condition
  • The birth of a child or placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care
  • A qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that an employee’s eligible family member is a military member on “covered active duty” or call to covered active duty status

Qualifying Reasons for Military Caregiver Leave

Eligible employees may take up to 26 work weeks of FMLA-covered military caregiver leave in a single 12-month period to care for a service member or veteran who is:

  • Undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy
  • Otherwise in outpatient status
  • Otherwise on the temporary disability retired list for a serious injury or illness

Eligibility

  • A UW employee must have at least 12 months of cumulative state service, and have worked for the state in a qualifying capacity at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months immediately preceding the date the FMLA would begin.
  • You are eligible for FMLA if you have worked for the University for at least 12 months in a benefits eligible capacity; and if you have not previously exhausted your FMLA covered leave for the applicable 12-month period.
  • If you are on a 9-month service period, you are entitled to FMLA during contracted teaching periods, including summer if contracted to work.
  • If you are on a 12-month service period, you are eligible year-round while in active paid status.

FMLA may be taken intermittently, or as part of a reduced work schedule as medically necessary.

Download a copy of the FMLA and PFML Information Summary for academic personnel for additional information.

Calculating FMLA Leave Availability

The UW uses the rolling 12-month period to track FMLA leave usage and availability.

Examples for Calculating FMLA leave availability during a 12-month period

The UW uses a rolling 12-month period to calculate FMLA measuring backward from the date an employee uses any FMLA leave. Under the rolling 12-month period, each time an employee takes FMLA leave, the remaining leave entitlement would be the balance of the 12 weeks which has not been used during the immediately preceding 12 months.

Example 1: John requests three weeks of FMLA to begin on June 15, 2020
John requests three weeks of FMLA to begin on June 15, 2020. UW looks back 12 months to June 16, 2019, to see if any FMLA leave had been used. Since John hasn’t taken any FMLA in the previous year, he is entitled to the 3 weeks he requested and has 9 more weeks available.

Example 2: Courtney requests 4 weeks of FMLA to begin on December 1, 2020
Courtney requests 4 weeks of FMLA to begin on December 1, 2020. UW looks back 12 months to December 2, 2019, to see if any FMLA leave had been used. Since Courtney had taken 5 weeks of FMLA beginning Feb. 1, and 5 weeks beginning July 15, she only has 2 weeks of FMLA available.
After Courtney takes her 2 weeks starting on Dec. 1, she can next take FMLA leave beginning Feb. 1 as the days of her previous February leave “roll off.”

How do I apply?

Employee’s Personal Serious Health Condition

Complete part 1 of the Personal Serious Health Condition form and submit to your healthcare provider. The healthcare provider will complete part 2 and submit directly to Academic HR*. To request the leave in Workday, review the ISC user guide.

Care for Qualifying Family Member’s Serious Health Condition

Complete part 1 of the Family Member’s Serious Health Condition form and submit to your family member’s healthcare provider. The healthcare provider will complete part 2 and submit directly to Academic HR*. To request the leave in Workday, review the ISC user guide.

Birth of a Child

For birth parents, complete part 1 of form and submit to your healthcare provider. The healthcare provider will complete part 2 and submit directly to Academic HR*. For non-birth, foster and adoptive parents, complete part 1 of form and submit to birth parent’s healthcare provider or foster/adoption agency.

*If your healthcare provider returns the completed form back to you rather than sending to Academic HR, submit the completed form to apleaves@uw.edu or fax 206-221-4622.

To request the leave in Workday, review the ISC user guide.

Military Family Leave- Qualifying Exigency

You may apply for a military family leave in the event of any qualifying urgent need arising from a family member (spouse, son, daughter, or parent) on active duty (or have received official notice of an impending call or order to active duty) in the armed forces (including the National Guard and Reserves) in support of a contingency operation.

For purposes of qualifying exigency leave, an employee’s son or daughter on covered active duty refers to a child of any age. For more information on qualifying exigencies, see the Department of Labor fact sheet.

Download and fill out the Military Family Leave Request – Qualifying Exigency form here.

Military Caregiver

Download and fill out the appropriate form.