absencesoft: absencetracker

MSU Human Resources has partnered with AbsenceSoft to launch AbsenceTracker, a digital option for requesting medical based leaves of absences. AbsenceTracker is available in EBS for employees and supervisors to request and track the status of FMLA, Medical, Maternity and Parental leaves of absences.  A Leave of Absence Request tile will be added to EBS, for easy access.

Employee User Guide

Expand All
  1. Login to the EBS portal.
  2. Select Leave of Absence Request Tile. An account will be automatically created.
  1. Click on New Request.

  2. Review personal info. If alternate contact information is temporarily necessary, select the check box at bottom of the Review Personal Info page.  The contact information can be entered on the next screen.
    1. If permanent personal information needs to be corrected, please update this in EBS, under the Personal Profile tile.
    2. Click Confirm and Continue.

  3. Select the reason for leave and enter the required information.
    1. Adoption/Foster Care – leave for or before the actual placement or adoption of a child
    2. Employee Health Condition – leave for your own serious health condition
    3. Family Health Condition - leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition
    4. Parental/Bonding – leave to bond with a newborn child or for a newly placed adopted or foster child within 12 months after the birth or placement
      1. Please indicate if you want to take bonding leave as part of the leave and enter the dates desired. Estimated dates can be provided at this time.  If necessary, the dates will be adjusted by the Leave Advisor to comply with actual dates and policy. Bonding = Parental Leave
      2. Bonding time should only be used when you are using parental leave upon delivery.
      3. If not sure what to put here, answer No and HR will update.
    5. Pregnancy/Maternity – leave for the birth of a child
    6. Military – select if the leave is for yourself as part of USERRA or for a family member
      1. Options will expand to include
        1. Active Duty (self)
        2. Care for Injured Servicemember
        3. Ceremony
        4. Qualifying Exigency
        5. Reserve Training

  4. Select the type of leave to be taken.
    1. Consecutive (continuous time away from work)
    2. Intermittent (not continuous or steady, occurs at irregular intervals)
    3. Reduced (restricted number of hours you can work)

  5. Enter the dates for the leave.
    1. There must be a start and end date for the case. For the birth of a child, the estimated due date may be entered.  If end date is unknown enter your best estimate and this can be updated in the case later.  Reach out to your Leave Advisor in Human Resources for any changes needed to the case.

  6. Answer question on the Additional Information Page.
    1. You may authorize use of paid/unpaid time in addition to what is required by MSU policy and /or the collective bargaining agreement.
    2. Time off options for Support Staff

      For your own serious health condition, sick leave must be used. Once sick time is exhausted, you may supplement with vacation/personal, or go unpaid.

      For the care of a family member, family sick must be used. Once family sick is exhausted, you may supplement with vacation/personal, or go unpaid.

      For APA and APSA employees who are entitled to Paid Parental Leave (PPL), PPL must be used, then sick or family sick, whichever applies. Once PPL and sick/family sick is exhausted, you may supplement with vacation/personal, or go unpaid. All time elected will be counted toward the maximum allowed 12 work weeks of FMLA leave.

    3. Time off options for Faculty/Academic Staff

      For continuous time off for your own serious health condition, short term disability (STD) must be used. Once STD is exhausted, you may use vacation (annual year appointed employees only) or go unpaid.

      For care of a family member, you may use vacation (annual year appointed employees only) or go unpaid. All time elected will be counted toward the maximum allowed 12 work weeks of FMLA leave.

  7. Review request for accuracy and make any needed changes. Once confirmed click Submit Request.
    1. Once leave case is submitted, a case # will generate that you should reference on any follow ups with your Leave Advisor in HR.

  8. Click Close and View Cases to return to the home page. From the home page you can view your case history as well as the status of the case.
  1. Find the case relevant to that attachment.
  2. Click the add attachments button on the case.
  3. Select the file or drag and drop from your desktop to add.
  4. Select the Type of attachment.
    1. Communication
    2. Paperwork
    3. Documentation
    4. Other
  5. Add a brief description of the attachment.
  6. Click Save and Close.

Supervisor User Guide

  1. Login to the EBS portal.

  2. Select Leave of Absence Request Tile. An account will be automatically created.
  1. Click on My Team
    1. Alternatively, you may also type the employees name in the "Search for a Team Member or Case" search bar

  2. Click on the calendar icon next to the employee you are opening the case for

  3. Click on New Request

  4. Review personal info. If alternate contact information is temporarily necessary, select the check box at bottom of the Review Personal Info page.  The contact information can be entered on the next screen.
    1. If permanent personal information needs to be corrected, have the employee update this in EBS, under the Personal Profile tile.

  5. Select the reason for leave and enter the required information.
    1. Adoption/Foster Care – leave for or before the actual placement or adoption of a child
    2. Employee Health Condition – leave for your own serious health condition
    3. Family Health Condition - leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition
    4. Parental/Bonding – leave to bond with a newborn child or for a newly placed adopted or foster child within 12 months after the birth or placement
    5. Pregnancy/Maternity – leave for the birth of a child
      1. For Pregnancy/Maternity Cases please indicate if the employee wants to take bonding leave as part of the leave and enter the dates desired. Estimated dates can be provided at this time.  If necessary, the dates will be adjusted by the Leave Advisor to comply with actual dates and policy. Bonding = Parental Leave
        1. Bonding time should only be used when you are using parental leave upon delivery.
        2. If not sure what to put here, answer No and HR will update.
    6. Military – select if the leave is for the employee as part of USERRA or for a family member
      1. Options will expand to include
        1. Active Duty (self)
        2. Care for Injured Servicemember
        3. Ceremony
        4. Qualifying Exigency
        5. Reserve Training

  6. Select the type of leave to be taken
    1. Consecutive (continuous time away from work)
    2. Intermittent (not continuous or steady, occurs at irregular intervals)
    3. Reduced (restricted number of hours you can work)

  7. Enter in the dates for the leave
    1. There must be a start and end date for the case. For the birth of a child, the estimated due date may be entered.  If end date is unknown enter your best estimate and this can be updated in the case later.  Reach out to your Leave Advisor in Human Resources for any changes needed to the case

  8. Answer question on the Additional Information Page, if applicable
    1. The employee may authorize use of paid/unpaid time in addition to what is required by MSU policy and /or the collective bargaining agreement
    2. Time off options for Support Staff

      For your own serious health condition, sick leave must be used. Once sick time is exhausted, you may supplement with vacation/personal, or go unpaid.

      For the care of a family member, family sick must be used. Once family sick is exhausted, you may supplement with vacation/personal, or go unpaid.

      For APA and APSA employees who are entitled to Paid Parental Leave (PPL), PPL must be used, then sick or family sick, whichever applies. Once PPL and sick/family sick is exhausted, you may supplement with vacation/personal, or go unpaid. All time elected will be counted toward the maximum allowed 12 work weeks of FMLA leave.

    3. Time off options for Faculty/Academic Staff

      For continuous time off for your own serious health condition, short term disability (STD) must be used. Once STD is exhausted, you may use vacation (annual year appointed employees only) or go unpaid.

      For care of a family member, you may use vacation (annual year appointed employees only) or go unpaid. All time elected will be counted toward the maximum allowed 12 work weeks of FMLA leave.

  9. Review request for accuracy and make any needed changes

  10. Once confirmed click Submit Request
    1. Once the leave case is submitted, a case # will generate that you should reference on any follow ups with the employee’s Leave Advisor in HR

  11. Click Close and View Cases to return to the home page
    1. From the home page you can view employee’s case history as well as the status of cases by clicking back on My Team
  1. Click on the orange text to review that employees’ cases. If no cases have been opened for the employee this will be blank.

  2. From here you can view all cases, upload attachments, and review the calendar that shows time that the employee has been off for the condition(s)

As a supervisor you can pull reports on your team’s leave of absence cases

  1. Click on Reports

  2. Reports Available to Pull are:
    1. Absence Status Reports
      1. Detail Report
      2. By Office Location
      3. By Reason
    2. Intermittent Pattern & Usage Report

  3. My Organization Reports – Absence Status Report

  4. To pull a report, click on the report you want to run

  5. Update Filters to pull desired results
    1. Please note the Date Range will pull any case open at any point during those dates not if the case was created within those dates

  6. Click Run Report to see results in the portal
    1. If you want to send results or see in Excel select to export the report

Contact

For more information, contact the MSU HR Leaves Team at fmlarequest@hr.msu.edu.