The Essential Guide to Family & Medical Leave

chapter 7 | Giving Notice and Designating Leave | 127
Your company may even be able to designate time off as FMLA leave after
the employee returns to work—though this is usually prohibited. The three
exceptions are:
• The employee was absent for an FMLA-qualifying reason, but you did
not learn that reason until after the employee returned to work. When
this happens, you must designate the leave as FMLA leave within two
business days of the employee’s return to work.
• You believe the leave is for an FMLA-qualifying reason but have been
unable to confirm that reason. You must preliminarily designate this
as FMLA leave as soon as you have reason to believe it is FMLAqualified,
subject to withdrawal following your receipt of a confirmation,
certification, or second opinion.
• You are awaiting medical certification or a second opinion that you have
requested. Because you already had some idea that the leave might be
FMLA leave, you must have preliminarily designated the leave.
Designating Paid Leave as FMLA Leave
The FMLA allows employees to substitute paid time off provided under the
employer’s policies—such as vacation, sick, or personal leave—for certain
types of unpaid FMLA leave. It also sometimes allows employers to require
employees to make this substitution, even if the employee doesn’t want to.
In addition, you should designate any time off for which the employee is
paid from another source as FMLA leave, if it meets the requirements. For
example, an employee who suffers an on-the-job injury and takes time off
while receiving workers’ compensation benefits is probably also qualified for
FMLA leave—and you should designate that time off accordingly.
Paid Leave Provided by Your Company
Whether company-provided paid leave can be used during all or part of an
employee’s FMLA leave depends on the type of leave requested and your
company’s leave policies.