State FMLA – Or. Rev. Stat. §§ 659A.150 to 659A.186 (Oregon Family Leave Act)

This portion of the Oregon Family leave is for Pregnancy Medical

Covered Employers: Employers with 25 or more employees in Oregon each working day during 20 or more calendar work weeks in the current or preceding calendar year.

Employee Eligibility: Employee must have worked for employer at least 180 days immediately prior to leave and at least 25 hours per week and be suffering from a disabling illness, injury, or condition related to pregnancy or childbirth. .

Entitlement: 12 weeks of leave in a one-year period for a disabling illness, injury, or condition related to pregnancy or childbirth. This is in addition to the other leaves available under the OFLA. Oregon Family(see page 299) .

Employer Notice: Employers must post copies of the state-provided family leave notice in areas accessible to and regularly frequented by employees at every facility or work sites.
Except in the case of sick child leave and bereavement leave, when an employee requests leave, or when the employer acquires knowledge that an employee's leave may be for an Oregon Family Leave Act-qualifying reason, the employer must provide the employee within 5 business days, a written request for information to verify whether the leave is OFLA-Qualifying. Within 5 business days of receiving the requested information, the employer must notify the employee whether the employee is eligible and qualifies for OFLA leave. If an employer determines that an employee does not qualify for OFLA leave for the reason requested, the employer must notify the employee in writing that the employee does not qualify. The written notice must state that the employee is ineligible and/or that the requested leave does not qualify, and at least one reason why the employee is not eligible or the circumstances do not qualify. Employers must post copies of the state-provided family leave notice in areas accessible to and regularly frequented by employees at every facility or work sites

Employee Notice: An employer may require employees to give at least 30 days' written notice of the need for leave. If an employee is unable to give 30 days' notice, the employee is encouraged to give the employer as much advance notice as is practicable. Relevant to pregnancy-related medical leave, an employee may take leave without prior notice if necessary for an unexpected serious health condition. If an employee starts leave without prior notice, the employee must give oral notice to the employer within 24 hours of the start of leave, and must provide written notice within 3 days after the employee return to work. An employer may request additional information to determine whether a leave qualifies under the law, except in cases of parental leave. An employer may provisionally designate leave as leave under the OFLA until sufficient information is received. If an employee fails to provide the required notice, the employer may reduce the period of family leave by 3 weeks and the employee may be subject to disciplinary action under a uniformly applied policy or practice of the employer. An employer may not reduce an employee's available OFLA or take disciplinary action unless it has posted the required notice or can establish the employee had actual notice of the notice requirement. Further, Federal regulations prohibit reducing the leave period under FMLA but permit an employer to delay the start of leave due to improper notice. An employer may require an employee on leave to periodically report to the employer on her status and intention to return. When an employee does not return to work after the end of the authorized period of leave, an employer having reason to believe that the continuing absence may qualify as OFLA leave must request additional information and may not treat the continuing absence as unauthorized unless the requested information is not provided or does not support OFLA qualification.

Obligation to Provide Certifications or Documents Supporting Need for Leave: An employer may require medical certification when leave is taken due to an employee's serious health condition. If an employee is required to provide 30 days' notice of a leave, the employer may require that medical certification be provided before the leave starts. If prior notice is not given, medical verification must be provided within 15 days of the employer's request. employer must pay the cost of medical verification if not covered by insurance. An employer may require a second (and in some instances, a third) medical opinion at the employer's expense. An employer may not directly ask the health care provider for additional information. A health care provider representing the employer may contact the employee's health care provider, with the employee's permission, for purposes of clarifying the medical verification. An employer may require subsequent medical verification on a reasonable basis. An employer may require that an employee provide a fitness for duty certification before returning to work but only if it has a uniformly applied practice or policy of requiring such certification. The employer may not ask for a second opinion.

Paid?: No. However, the employee or employer may choose to have the employee's family leave run concurrently with workers' compensation
leave or any other paid or unpaid leave. An Employer can require the use of paid leave during family leave, however, employers must give prior written notice of such requirement before leave begins. If leave begins without advance notice, employers must provide this written notice within five days after receiving an employee's notice of the need for leave.

Note: If leave qualifies under state and federal law and an employee takes part-day leave, such employee's pay can be reduced without jeopardizing the employee's exempt status. If the leave qualifies under state law only, reducing an employee's pay for part day absences jeopardizes the employee's exempt status under state law.

Benefits: OFLA does not require benefits be maintained during leave. However, if the employer maintains benefits for employees on other types of leave (e.g., personal leave of absence), the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries takes the position that it is discriminatory to deny benefits to an employee simply because they are using leave under OFLA. If an employer chooses to provide benefits, benefits must be provided at the same payment terms that applied before the leave. In any case, all benefits must be reinstated at prior levels immediately upon the employee´s return.

Reinstatement: On return from family leave, employees must be restored to their former positions. If an employee's original position has been eliminated, the employee must be restored to a position with equivalent employment benefits, pay, and other terms and conditions of employment. If an equivalent position is unavailable at a returning employee's job site, the employee can be offered an equivalent position at a job site located within 20 miles of the former work site. An employee is not entitled to reinstatement to her former position if she would have been bumped even if OFLA leave were not taken. If an employee provides unequivocal notice of her intent not to return from OFLA leave, the employee may complete the leave (if the need still exists), but the employer is under no obligation to hold the employee's position open or to restore the employee to her prior position or benefits except as required by COBRA.

Other Important Definitions/Requirements: Not specified

Relationship with Other Leave: State family leave is to be taken concurrently with federal FMLA leave. Any FMLA leave taken will count as state leave if the employee is eligible for state family leave. Employers subject to both state and federal leave laws must use the law and regulations that are more beneficial to employees' circumstances.

Absence Specifications