Employee Handbook 2024

becomes known that employees unequivocally are not returning to work, employees are no longer entitled to leave and Merritt’s obligations to provide health benefits and to restore employees to work cease at that point. Employees must use any accumulated paid time off, if applicable, to the extent it is available during this leave period unless such leave is covered under workers’ compensation, in which case the employee may use accumulated leave time only for the purpose of satisfying any waiting period. Once any available PTO is exhausted, the remainder of the FMLA leave will be unpaid. Any PTO taken during FMLA leave will run concurrently with FMLA leave and will not extend the maximum FMLA leave allotment, consistent with applicable law. Absences in excess of the available FMLA allotments will be treated as leave without pay, and must be approved in advance by your Team Leader. Upon return from FMLA leave, the employee will be restored to their original or an equivalent position. Employees who do not return to work immediately upon exhausting FMLA leave are not guaranteed reinstatement. If the employee and the employee’s spouse both work for Merritt, they are both eligible for leave. In certain circumstances, the total FMLA leave period for the employee and the employee spouse may be limited to 12 weeks total. It may be necessary for some employees to have intermittent FMLA leave. Merritt will work with the employee to arrange a reduced work schedule or leave of absence in order to care for a family member’s serious medical condition or the employee’s own serious medical condition when medically necessary. Leave because of the birth or adoption of a child must be completed within the 12-month period beginning on the date of birth or placement of the child. If an employee requests an extension of leave beyond the 12-week period because of their own serious medical condition, the employee must submit medical certification of a continued serious health condition in advance of the request. Merritt will review such requests on a case-by-case basis in order to determine whether it can reasonably accommodate such a request. Reinstatement is not guaranteed on an extended leave and will depend upon the business needs of the organization. The provisions set forth above are a brief summary of the entitlements and requirements under the FMLA. It is our intention to administer the policy in a manner consistent with all applicable law. Questions regarding FMLA leave should be directed to the Human Resources Department. All leave taken pursuant to this policy runs concurrently with any leave available to eligible employees under applicable state family and medical leave, parental leave, military family leave, and/or pregnancy disability laws.

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