Q: My employee’s hours vary every week. How will benefits be calculated?
A: In this situation, PFL benefits are calculated based on the employee’s average weekly salary for the previous 8 weeks of payroll. Employees may decide to claim PFL strategically, following a period of time when they worked a greater number of hours.
Q: Can an employee who quit their job after having a baby still claim PFL?
A: No; you are only eligible for paid family leave while employed. Employees who are considering quitting may want to postpone this decision to be able to claim their earned benefits.
Q: Can an employee take Paid Family Leave if they had a baby prior to starting their job?
A: Possibly. Employees are required to work a minimum of 26 consecutive weeks (for full-time employees) or 175 days total (for those that work less than 20 hours a week) to qualify for PFL. However, since PFL benefits can be claimed until the new child is one year old, the employee may still have time to take PFL once they have reached the required working minimum.
Q: Can an employee who had a baby claim PFL if they were unable to work for a period of time while pregnant?
A: Most likely, yes. As long as the employee was taking an approved leave of absence when taking time off during pregnancy, they still qualify for PFL. Their average pay will be calculated based on their most recent payroll prior to their taking time off.
Q: Can an employee who works two jobs — and is eligible for PFL at both — take time off from just one job?
A: Yes. It is permitted to claim PFL benefits from only one job. However, if you later want to take off from your other job, keep in mind that the total leave duration cannot exceed 12 weeks for the same qualifying event.
Q: I want to keep my employee on payroll while she is on maternity leave. Can I get reimbursement for that?
A: Companies have the option of continuing payroll with no interruption for employees who are out on PFL and instead claiming reimbursement (67%) to be paid to the company.
Q: If I own my company, am I still eligible for PFL?
A: It depends if you own a corporation or LLC. If your company is a corporation, you are automatically covered, unless you complete a special form requesting to be excluded.
If you own a limited liability company (LLC), you, as the officer, are automatically excluded from receiving benefits. To request coverage you can submit a voluntary coverage form to the Workers’ Compensation Board and inform your insurance carrier that you’d like to opt in for Paid Family Leave and Disability Insurance.
Note: You need to request coverage within the first 26 weeks of opening your business. Otherwise, you will be subject to a 2-year waiting period before receiving benefits.
We hope you found this information helpful. If at any time you have questions about eligibility, reach out to us and we will be happy to assist (and maybe have your question featured in a future blog..).