Upon return from FMLA leave, employees must be restored to their original or an equivalent position with equivalent pay, benefits and other employment terms. The FMLA allows employers to deny job restoration to “key employees” (employees who are paid on a salary basis and are the highest paid ten percent of the workforce) if reinstatement of the employee would cause “substantial and grievous economic harm” to the employer, and if the employer has provided the specific notification as required by the FMLA for “key employees”. The law does not supersede any state or local law which provides greater family or medical leave rights, nor does it affect greater leave rights provided under a collective bargaining agreement. Also, employers may adopt policies more generous than those required by the FMLA. Employers must post a notice, available from the U.S. Department of Labor, explaining employee rights and responsibilities under the law. This notice obligation also includes posting notices in languages necessary to accommodate the employer’s workforce. Editor’s note . The US Department of Labor has issued an Administrative Interpretation clarifying its opinion that employees are entitled to take FMLA leave for birth, bonding or to care for the child of a domestic partner or same-sex domestic partner, as well as other children for whom an employee has responsibility for day-to-day care or financial responsibility, even though the employee has no biological or legal relationship to the child. (Administrator’s Interpretation No. 2010-3). Military leave under the FMLA is governed by different definitions. Effective January 1, 2024, Minnesota’s Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST) law requires employers to provide paid leave to employees who work in the state. Sick and safe time is paid leave employers must provide to employees in Minnesota that can be used for certain reasons, including when an employee is sick, to care for a sick family member or to seek assistance if an employee or their family member has experienced domestic abuse. For more details and ongoing updated information go to the Minnesota Department of Labor & Industry (DLI) Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST). Fact sheets in Chinese, English, Hmong, Somali and Spanish languages along with FAQs. Contact information: 651-284-5075 | dli.laborstandards@ state.mn.us. Note: Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST) (ESST) is different than the Paid Family and Medical Leave benefits program which will start January 1, 2026. Pregnancy and Parenting Leave (Minnesota Law). A Minnesota employer must grant an unpaid leave of absence to certain employees in conjunction with the birth or adoption of a child. This includes prenatal care and incapacity due to pregnancy. The law applies to employers who have one or more employees. The length of the leave may not exceed 12 weeks, unless otherwise agreed to by the employer, and must begin at a time requested by the employee. The employer may adopt reasonable policies governing the timing of requests for unpaid leave. The length of leave may be reduced by any period of paid parental or disability leave, but not accrued sick leave, provided by the employer so that the total leave does not exceed 12 weeks unless otherwise agreed by the employer. The employer may provide additional parental leave benefits. In the case of parenting leave taken in conjunction with the birth or adoption of a child, leave may begin anytime within 12 months after the birth or adoption of a child, or within 12 months after the child leaves the hospital, if the child remains in the hospital longer than the mother.
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