Employees who have worked for Play-Well TEKnologies at least 12 months, have worked at least 1,250 hours during the previous year, and work within 75 miles of at least 50 company employees, are eligible to take FMLA leave.

For information on FMLA requests, contact Lisa Doering, Vice President of Human Resources.

Reasons for Leave

Eligible employees may take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for these purposes:

• For your own serious health condition that makes it impossible to work.
• To care for a spouse, same-sex spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent who has a serious health condition.
• For organ or bone marrow donation (Connecticut employees only.)
• To bond with a newborn, newly adopted child, or recently placed foster child.
• To handle a qualifying exigency relating to a spouse's, children, or parent's deployment to a foreign country on active duty or call to active duty in the National Guard, or Reserves.

This 12-month period begins on the date that you first take FMLA leave.

A serious health condition is an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves either inpatient care or continuing treatment by a health care practitioner for a condition that prevents you or a family member from performing the functions of the job, participating in school, or performing other daily activities. Incapacity relating to pregnancy, prenatal care, or childbirth is a serious health condition. If you have questions about what qualifies as a serious health condition, contact our Human Resources Department.

Qualifying exigencies include issues arising out of a family member's short notice deployment; attending military events and activities; arranging for alternative child care; making financial and legal arrangements; attending counseling sessions; attending post-deployment activities; and visiting the family member while on short-term, temporary rest leave. Other activities and events may also qualify. If you have questions about qualifying exigencies, contact our Human Resources Department.

Military Family Leave

California employees who work an average of 20 or more hours per week are eligible for up to ten days of unpaid leave in a qualified leave period. Military family leave is provided for the time during which the spouse is on leave from deployment during a period of military conflict; the spouse must be a member of the National Guard or Reserves who has been deployed during a period of military conflict, or a member of the U.S. Armed Forces who has been deployed during a period of military conflict to an area that the President has designated as a combat theater or combat zone.

Pregnancy Disability Leave

All California employees are eligible for unpaid pregnancy disability leave for a disability relating to pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions for a reasonable period, not to exceed four months. Eligible California employees who are unable to work due to a temporary disability, including pregnancy, can receive up to 55% of their usual wages through California’s temporary disability insurance program. For more information, go to www.edd.ca.gov/Disability

Domestic Violence Leave

An employee who is the victim of sexual assault or domestic violence is eligible for unpaid leave for the following reasons:

• To obtain a restraining order or seek other judicial relief for the employee or their child.
• To seek medical treatment.
• To obtain services from a rape crisis center or domestic violence shelter or program.
• To get counseling.
• To engage in safety planning and/or relocate.

An employee who has worked for Play-Well TEKnologies for at least 12 months and has been the victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, domestic abuse, or stalking, is eligible for three days of unpaid leave in a 12-month period to seek:

• Medical treatment or counseling for the employee or their children.
• A civil protection order.
• New housing or make an existing home secure.
• Legal assistance or attend court-related proceedings.

Employees may be eligible for additional leave if your child, parent, spouse, or next of kin:

1. Is a current member of the Armed Forces, including the National Guard or Reserves.
2. Suffers a serious illness or injury in the line of duty on active duty.
3. Is undergoing treatment, recuperation or therapy; is in outpatient status; or is on the temporary disability retired list.

Employees in this situation may take up to 26 weeks of leave in a single 12-month period to care for the family member. This leave is not in addition to the 12 weeks of leave available for reasons addressed above. Employees eligible for this type of leave are entitled to 26 total weeks of leave in a 12-month period, for all reasons.

Leave Available

Eligible employees may take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for any of the purposes listed under "Reasons for Leave” above. This 12-month period begins on the date you first take FMLA leave. A parent who takes leave to care for a newborn, newly adopted child, or recently placed foster child must complete this leave within a year after the birth, adoption, or placement.

This leave is also available for family members of veterans suffering from a serious, service-related illness or injury, if the veteran was a member of the Armed Forces, National Guard, or Reserves within five years of needing care. This 12-month period begins on the date you first take FMLA leave.

If you and your spouse both work for our company, the two of you will be entitled to a combined total of 12 weeks of leave to care for a newborn, newly adopted child, or recently placed foster child, and to care for a parent with a serious health condition. If you both qualify for the leave described under “26-Week Entitlement,” above, you will be entitled to a combined total of 26 weeks of leave for this purpose, to care for a newborn, newly adopted child, or recently placed foster child, and to care for a parent with a serious health condition.

Notice Requirements

Employees are required to give notice at least 30 days in advance if your need for leave is foreseeable. If you fail to do so, we may delay your leave. If you can't give 30-days' notice, you must give notice as soon as it is practicable under the circumstances and must generally comply with our usual procedures. We may ask you to explain why you were unable to give 30-days' notice.

When you give notice of requested leave, you must provide enough information for us to determine when the leave qualifies as FMLA leave. If you have already taken FMLA leave for the same reason, you must refer either to the reason or to the need for FMLA leave when you give notice.

Reinstatement

When employees return from leave, you have the right to return to your former position or an equivalent position, except when:

You have no greater right to reinstatement than you would have had if you had not been on leave. If the position is eliminated for reasons unrelated to the leave, for example, you have no right to reinstatement.

The company may not be obligated to reinstate a key employee—that is, someone who is among the highest paid 10% of our workforce, when holding that job open would cause the company substantial economic harm. If you are classified as a key employee, you will be notified soon after you request the leave.

Use of Paid Leave

An employee who has accrued paid time off must use these benefits to receive pay for all or a portion of family and medical leave, as long as the reason for leave is covered by the applicable type of time off. To use paid leave, you must comply with the usual requirements for using that type of leave (for example, notice or scheduling requirements). If you do not, you may not be allowed to use paid leave, but will still be entitled to take unpaid FMLA leave if you are eligible.

f an employee takes paid sick leave, workers' compensation leave, disability leave, or other leave for a reason that qualifies for family and medical leave, the company may designate that time off as family and medical leave and count it against your entitlement.

If you are receiving workers’ compensation or disability benefits while on FMLA leave, you may not use accrued paid leave for all of the hours you miss; this would result in you receiving more than your usual pay. However, you may use accrued paid leave, as long as you are otherwise eligible, to supplement your benefits, so you receive your usual pay while on leave. For example, if you are receiving 60% of your usual compensation through disability insurance, you may use paid leave to be paid for the other 40%.

Certification

Play-Well may require you to provide a certification form regarding the need for leave. If you take leave for your own or a family member’s serious health condition, or to care for a family member who suffers or aggravates a serious injury or illness in military service, a health care practitioner must complete part of this form. For qualifying exigency leave, you must complete this form. We will provide you with the certification form you must submit.

Play-Well has the right to seek a second opinion (and perhaps, a third opinion), and periodic recertifications. We may also ask you to provide other types of documentation, such as a copy of active duty orders or proof of a family relationship to the person under your care.

Play-Well may also ask you to provide a fitness for duty report from your doctor before you return to work after taking leave for your own serious health condition.

Intermittent Leave

Employees may take leave all at one time or intermittently—that is, a few hours or days at a time—for all types of leave listed above except leave to care for a new child. In the case of leave for your own serious health condition, to care for a family member with a serious health condition, or to care for a family member who suffers a serious injury or illness in military service, intermittent leave is available only if it is medically necessary.

If you need intermittent leave for scheduled medical treatment, you must make a reasonable effort to schedule your leave so it doesn't unduly disrupt Play-Well's operations. We may temporarily assign you to a different position with equivalent pay and benefits to accommodate the intermittent schedule.

Play-Well will consider requests for intermittent leave to care for a new child on a case-by-case basis.

Health Insurance During Leave

Health insurance benefits will continue during FMLA leave. You will be responsible for paying any portion of the premium that you ordinarily pay while you are working, and you must make arrangements to make these payments while you are out. Employees who choose not to return from family and medical leave may be required to reimburse the Company for any premiums paid on the employee’s behalf during the leave.