Policies » Section G: Personnel » GCCBC: Family And Medical Leave Act

Policy Date: 01/23/2024

HSD File: GCCBC
HOOKSETT SCHOOL DISTRICT
FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT

Pursuant to the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, the Hooksett School District will provide
up to 12 weeks of unpaid family/medical leave per year for employees eligible for such leave. The
following policy outlines the basic requirements for obtaining leave, the amount of leave that may
be taken, and how the leave relates to other time off provided by the Hooksett School District.

Eligibility
A school district employee must have been employed by the school district for at least 12 months
and who has worked at least 900 hours in the previous 12-month period shall be eligible for
family and medical leave under the same terms and conditions as leave provided to eligible
employees under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.

Employees may take family/medical leave in the following circumstances:

1. To care for a newborn child, so long as leave is completed by the child’s first birthday;

2. When a child is placed with the employee for adoption or foster case, so long as the leave is
completed by one year following initial placement;

3. To care for a spouse, child or parent of an employee who requires such care because of a
serious health condition; or

4. Because the employee has a serious health condition which renders him/her unable to
perform his/her job.

Amount of Family/Medical Leave
In no event can family/medical leave last for longer than 12 weeks per year. The year, for these
purposes, shall be July 1 through June 30. Employees who wish to take family/medical leave will
be required to substitute any accrued but unused vacation and other leave for family/medical
leave (i.e., use of other leave will count as concurrent use of family/medical leave). If other
accrued leave is exhausted in less than 12 weeks, employees may augment such leave with
family/medical leave until the total of all leave equals 12 weeks. No additional vacation or sick
leave will accrue while an employee is on family/medical leave. However, upon returning to work,
employees will continue to accrue vacation and other leave.

An employee who is taking family/medical leave on account of a serious medical condition of
himself/herself, a spouse, a child, or a parent may take leave intermittently or on a
reduced-schedule basis. Employees taking family/medical leave for any other reason are not
entitled to leave on an intermittent or reduced-schedule basis. When necessary, an employee on
intermittent or reduced-schedule leave may be transferred to another position, with no loss in
pay or benefits, which will more easily accommodate the need for leave.

Special Rules for Teachers
Congress created special rules for teachers who must take family/medical leave intermittently due to their
own or covered relatives’ serious health conditions. If the teacher would be on leave for more than 20
percent of the working days in the period for which the teacher seeks intermittent leave, the Hooksett School
District may require the teacher to elect either (1) to take non-intermittent leave for the period not to exceed
the duration of the planned medical treatment or (2) to transfer temporarily to an available alternative
position that the employee is qualified to hold, that has equivalent pay and benefits, and that better
accommodates intermittent leave than the employee’s regular position.

Special provisions also limit teachers’ rights to take family/medical leave, either intermittent or non-
intermittent, close to the end of an academic term. The United States Department of Labor’s regulations
define “academic term” to mean a semester. If a teacher wishes to begin family/medical leave (for any
purpose) more than five weeks before the end of the term and to return with less than three weeks left in
the term, the Hooksett School District may require the teacher to remain on leave until the end of the term.
If the employee wishes to begin family/medical leave (for any purpose except his/her own serious health
condition) more than three but less than five weeks before the end of the term and to return during the last
two weeks of the term, the Hooksett School District may require the teacher to remain on leave until the end
of the term. If the teacher wishes to begin family/medical leave (for any purpose except his/her own serious
health condition) during the last three weeks of the term and wishes to take leave of more than five working
days, the Hooksett School District may require the teacher to remain on leave until the end of the term.

Health and Other Insurance Benefits
During family/medical leave, an employee’s health insurance will continue on the same basis as when the
employee was on active status. If this requires employee contribution for health insurance, the employee
must make timely premium payments in order to maintain insurance for himself/herself and dependents. If
an employee does not return from family/medical leave, the Hooksett School District is entitled to collect all
health premiums paid during the family/medical leave from the employee.

It may be necessary for the employee to continue other benefits as well, such as disability or life insurance,
in order to be entitled to the same coverage upon return from leave. Employees will be required to pay
premiums for any coverage which must be continued during the leave.

Notice of Leave
Employees seeking leave must provide, to the extent practicable, 30 days notice that they intend to take
family/medical leave. If an employee does not provide at least 30 days notice, an explanation must be
provided as to why less notice was given. The Hooksett School District may either permit the employee to
begin the leave as requested or require him/her to wait 30 days until after notice was provided to begin
leave.

Forms for notifying the Hooksett School District of the need for leave are available from the Superintendent’s
office.

Certification of Need for Leave
Each employee requesting family/medical leave on account of a medical condition of the employee, spouse,
child or parent must provide certification from a health care provider which sets forth:

1. The date the serious health condition commenced and the health care provider’s best medical judgment
concerning the probable duration of the condition;

2. Diagnosis of the serious health condition;

3. A brief statement of the regimen of treatment prescribed for the condition by the health care provider;

4. Indication of whether in-patient hospitalization is required;

5. A statement of whether the employee is unable to perform his/her job because of the health condition or
is needed to care for the spouse, child or parent with the condition; and

6. If intermittent or reduced-leave schedules are requested, the dates of expected medical treatment and
the duration of such treatment.

Medical certification must be provided within 15 days after the request for leave is made. Employees who do
not provide this information in a timely manner may be denied leave.

Reinstatement
At the beginning of the family/medical leave, the employee is to inform the Superintendent of his/her
expected return date. Except as otherwise provided by law, employees will be returned to the same or an
equivalent position to the position occupied before the leave begins. An equivalent position is one that is
similar in terms of pay, benefits and terms and conditions of employment. Under certain conditions a “key
employee” may not be reinstated to the same or a similar position.

If the employee takes leave on account of his/her serious medical condition, he/she will be required to
present a medical certification of his/her fitness for duty before being permitted to return. If an employee
fails to provide this certification within 50 days after the conclusion of the leave, the employee may be
terminated.

Adopted: November 15, 2005
Revised: January 23, 2024