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Eligibility  

An employee must have earned $1,000 in wages in four out of the five quarters prior to applying for leave and must be experiencing a qualifying life event (the “base year”).  If an employee does not qualify under the base year calculation, they may still qualify for benefits if they earned at least $1000 in wages under the four most recently completed quarters before the start of the benefit year (the “alternative base year”).  

This policy covers all Head Start of Lane County (the “Agency”) employees, including full-time, part-time, permanent, or temporary, regardless of location who have been continuously employed by Agency for at least 30 calendar days.    

Any employee who was eligible for benefits under their previous Oregon employer’s equivalent plan, and who begins to work for the Agency will be automatically covered for benefits under this policy. Employees previously covered by Oregon’s Paid Leave program will be covered by this policy within 30 calendar days of their start date. 

Application 

Employees may submit applications for the equivalent plan for paid family and medical leave to American Fidelity. Applications may be submitted up to 30 days prior to the start of the leave and up to 30 days after the start of the leave.1 American Fidelity may require verification from the employee.2 American Fidelity will make all decisions regarding acceptance and denial of an application, including determining the amount of the benefit.3 The Agency cannot accept, file, process or make decisions on applications. 

An employee may appeal an approval or denial of claim, the amount of a weekly benefit or a disqualification from receipt of benefits to American Fidelity in accordance with Oregon Revised Statute (ORS) 657B.010 and Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 471-070-2220. 

Employee Notice to Agency 

If the leave is foreseeable, the employee must provide the Agency with written notice at least 30 calendar days prior to the leave. If the leave is not foreseeable the employee must give oral notice to the Agency within 24 hours of the start of the leave, and must provide written notice within 3 days after the start of leave. The Agency requests as much advanced notice as possible. 

The notice must include: 

  1. The employee’s first and last name;
  2. Type of leave;
  3. Explanation of the need for leave; and
  4. Anticipated timing and duration of leave, including if it is continuous or intermittent.

Notice need only be given one time, but the employee shall notify the Agency as soon as practicable if dates of scheduled leave change, are extended, or were initially unknown. This notice does not need to mention PFMLI to satisfy the notice requirements. 

 Failure to comply with these notice requirements may result in a penalty imposed by American Fidelity. American Fidelity may reduce the amount of the benefit by 25 percent in accordance with OAR 471-070-1310(9)-(10). 

Concurrent Use of Agency-Provided Paid Leave 

Head Start of Lane County allows employees to use employer-provided paid leave in addition to receiving PFMLI benefits to replace an employee’s wages up to 100 percent of the eligible employee’s average weekly wage. Example: 

An employee applies and is approved for PFMLI for a personal serious medical condition. American Fidelity determines that the rate of pay will be 75 percent of the employee’s regular salary. The employee will be allowed to use available Agency-provided paid leave (sick, vacation or otherwise) for days that PFMLI is received, but is limited to only utilizing an amount that increases the employee paid leave to 100 percent of regular payment. In this example, the amount would be 25 percent. 

Return to Work 

Upon completion of leave, the employee is entitled to return to the position held in the Agency prior to the leave, if that position still exists and if the employee had been employed in the Agency for 90 days prior to taking leave.8 If the position no longer exists, the employee is entitled to a position equal to their previous position, with equal benefits, pay and other terms and conditions of employment. 

Communications between the Agency and American Fidelity 

Upon receipt of an application or update in information from an employee for PFMLI, American Fidelity will notify the Agency. The Agency may provide additional information to American Fidelity within 10 days. This information may include, but is not limited to, information about the employee’s notice to the Agency or verification of the employee’s continued employment with the agency. If the Agency does not report such information to American Fidelity, American Fidelity will proceed using available information. The Agency can provide additional information to American Fidelity as it becomes available. 

If American Fidelity requests additional information from the Agency, the agency will respond within 10 calendar days. 

Once American Fidelity has issued a decision regarding an application submitted by an employee, American Fidelity will notify the Agency regarding the approval or denial and any applicable dates and periods of leave. Head Start of Lane County cannot appeal an American Fidelity decision. 

Agency Notice to Employees 

At the time of hire and each time the policy or procedure changes, the Agency must provide notice to employees. This notice must be in the language that the employer typically uses to communicate with employees and will include: 

  1. The right of an eligible employee to claim and receive family and medical leave insurance benefits; 
  2. The procedure for filing a claim for benefits; 
  3. That an eligible employee must provide notice to the Agency before the employee commences leave, and a description of the penalties for failure to comply with the notice requirements; 
  4. The right of an eligible employee to job protection and benefits continuation; 
  5. The right of an eligible employee to appeal a decision or determination made by American Fidelity; 
  6. That discrimination and retaliatory personnel actions against an employee for inquiring about the PFMLI, taking leave under the program or claiming PFMLI benefits are prohibited; 
  7. The right of an employee to bring a civil action or to file a complaint for violation of ORS 657B.060 or 657B.070; and 
  8. That any health information related to family leave, medical leave or safe leave provided to an employer by an employee is confidential and may not be released without the permission of the employee unless state or federal law or a court order permits or requires disclosure.

The Agency will display this notice in an area that is accessible to and regularly frequented by employees in each building or worksite. The Agency will provide this notice to employees working remotely by regular mail or through an electronic delivery method at the time of hire or assignment to remote work. 

Agency Filings 

The Agency will file the Oregon Quarterly Tax Report, the Oregon Employee Detail Report and any other reports required by law. If the Agency fails to submit required filings or reports, or fails to pay all required contributions, the Agency may be penalized in accordance with OAR 471-070-8520. 

Employee Protections 

No employee or prospective employee will be discriminated or retaliated against for inquiring about PFMLI, giving notification of leave under PFMLI, taking PFMLI leave or claiming PFMLI benefits. Eligible employees have a right to file a complaint and/or bring a civil action for violations of ORS 657B.060 or ORS 657B.070. 

Any health information related to family leave, medical leave or safe leave provided to the district by an employee is confidential and may not be released without the permission of the employee unless state or federal law or a court order permits or requires disclosure. 4853-6914-9822.1  

Policy Council approved on 11/2023

REVIEWED:
UPDATED: