PMLA FAQs
General
As you reference the proration chart in the PMLA policy, here are a few examples of how proration would work:
Example 1: Hire date June 15, 90-days = September 13, employee is credited with 40 hours.
Example 2: Hired March 31, 90-days = June 29, employee is credited with 0. As of July 1, employee is credited with 40 hours for new fiscal year.
No. A new employee must wait until after 90 calendar days following their start date before being able to use paid medical leave.
No. In this case, the employee is simply out of time off.
Leave regarding sexual assault and domestic violence
Paid leave may be used if the employee or employee’s family member is a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault:
- for medical care,
- for psychological or other counseling for physical or psychological injury or disability, to obtain services from a victim services organization,
- to relocate due to domestic violence or sexual assault,
- to obtain legal services,
- to participate in any civil or criminal proceedings related to or resulting from the domestic violence or sexual assault.
Supervisors can ask for documentation that the paid medical leave has been used for these purposes related to sexual assault and domestic violence. The following types of documentation are satisfactory for this purpose:
- Police report indicating the employee or employee’s family member was a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault.
- Signed statement from a victim and witness advocate affirming the employee or employee’s family member is receiving services from a victim services organization.
- Court document indicating the employee or employee’s family member is involved in legal action related to domestic violence or sexual assault.
Yes. Supervisors cannot request documentation related to leave for sexual assault or domestic violence that includes details of the violence or sexual assault.
Support staff who already accrue paid medical leave
If support staff already earn paid sick, vacation and personal time, how does the act apply to them?
The act does not require providing additional leave; rather, it allows employees to use paid time off for reasons related to domestic violence and sexual assault, and for some of these employees, the definition of family member is broader than currently defined by contract. The Support Staff Policy & Procedure for Sick Time has been revised to reflect these two changes.
No. In this case, the employee is simply out of paid time off.
“Family member” in the Support Staff Policy & Procedure for Sick Time (and the PMLA policy) includes:
- a biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild or legal ward, or a child to whom the employee stands in loco parentis
- a biological parent, foster parent, stepparent, or adoptive parent or legal guardian of an employee or an employee’s spouse or an individual who stood in loco parentis when the employee was a minor child
- an individual to whom the employee is legally married under the laws of any state
- a grandparent or a grandchild
- a biological, foster or adopted sibling
Yes. MSU made the decision to extend this reason for taking leave to all support staff, regardless of whether they are exempt from the act’s requirements.
Faculty & Academic Staff
No. FAS are exempt from the PMLA’s coverage. However, MSU made a determination that it would apply the provision related to domestic violence and sexual assault to FAS as well. Thus, if an FAS is requesting time off for the reasons set forth above under domestic violence and sexual assault, it should be granted as an additional reason for taking time off under FAS sick leave programs.
Implementation procedures
Any permissible account on the employee’s record.
No; however, a report is available for supervisors and Unit Time Administrators in EBS called Paid Medical Leave.
We recommend you run it biweekly prior to the Payroll time due date.
Yes, use the Recorded Time Entries Report.
No, not at this time.
