Leave


Family and Medical Leave: 

Chick-fil-A at Orland Park will grant family and medical leaves of absence to eligible employees in accordance with the requirements of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) and any applicable state or local law concerning this subject.  (Where state law provides for family or medical leave, FMLA and state law leave will, to the extent allowed by law, run concurrently.)  Eligible employees will be provided the most generous benefits available under either federal or state law, where state law applies. 

An employee should contact the Operator, or Manager, as soon as the employee becomes aware of the need for a family and medical leave.  This policy sets forth a summary of our policy in this regard, and employees’ rights to family and medical leave. 

Employee Eligibility: 

To be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must: (1) have worked for the Operator for a total of at least 12 months; (2) have worked at least 1,250 hours for the Operator over the previous 12 months; and (3) work at a location where there are at least 50 employees employed by the Operator at the location within a 75–mile radius. 

Reasons for Leave and Amounts of Leave: 

An eligible employee may take up to twelve (12) workweeks of unpaid leave during a 12-month calendar year for the following reasons: 

  • Birth, Adoption or Foster Care – because of the birth of a child and care of the newborn, the adoption of a child, or the placement of a foster child with the employee; 

  • Employee’s Own Serious Health Condition – because of the employee’s own serious health condition; 

  • Family Member’s Serious Health Condition – to care for a son or daughter, parent, or spouse with a serious health condition; or 

  • Active Duty Exigency – because of qualifying exigencies arising out of the fact that the employee’s spouse, child, or parent is on, or has been notified of an impending call to, active duty with the Armed Forces (if the spouse, child or parent is a member of the National Guard or Reserves or is a retired member of the Armed Forces or Reserve).  Qualifying exigencies are:  (1) short notice deployment, (2) military events and related activities, (3) childcare and school activities, (4) financial and legal arrangements, (5) counseling, (6) rest and recuperation (limited to five days), (7) post-deployment activities, and (8) other activities, provided that the Operator and the employee agree that the activity qualifies. 

A “serious health condition” means an injury, illness, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves either (1) inpatient care (i.e. an overnight stay) in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility (including any period of incapacity or any subsequent treatment in connection with the inpatient care), or (2) certain types of continuing treatment by a healthcare provider for a condition that either prevents the employee from performing the functions of his or her job or prevents the family member from participating in school or other daily activities.  Subject to certain conditions, “continuing treatment by a health care provider” includes: (a) a period of incapacity for a health condition lasting more than three consecutive calendar days combined with at least two visits to a health care provider or one visit and a regimen of continuing treatment; or (b) incapacity due to pregnancy; or (c) incapacity due to a chronic condition.  Other conditions may meet the definition of continuing treatment. 

 

 

 

An eligible employee may take up to twenty-six (26) workweeks of unpaid leave during a single 12-month period for the following reason: 

  • Serious Injury or Illness of a Covered Service Member – to care for a current member of the Armed Forces (including a member of the National Guard or Reserves) who has a serious injury or illness incurred in the line of duty on active duty that may render the servicemember medically unfit to perform his or her duties and for which the servicemember is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation or therapy or is otherwise in outpatient status or on the temporary disability retired list, if the employee is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of that service member. 

 

During the single 12-month period in which leave is granted for a serious injury or illness of a covered service member, an employee shall only be entitled to a combined total of twenty-six (26) workweeks of leave for both that leave and any FMLA leave taken during that period for any other reason.   

Intermittent and Reduced Schedule Leave: 

Eligible employees may take family or medical leave intermittently (e.g., in blocks of time) or by reducing their work schedule in certain circumstances.  If leave is taken to care for a child after birth, adoption or foster care, an employee may take the leave intermittently or on a reduced work schedule only with the Operator’s permission.  If leave is taken because of the employee’s own serious health condition, a family member’s serious health condition or a serious injury or illness of a covered service member, an employee may take the leave intermittently or on a reduced work schedule only if it is medically necessary.  Employees who are on an approved family or medical leave of absence may not perform work for any other employer during that leave. 

Notice of Need for Leave: 

An employee who needs to take family or medical leave (except for leave due to an active duty exigency) ordinarily must provide his or her supervisor with at least 30 days’ notice of the need for leave, if the need is foreseeable.  If the employee’s need for family and medical leave is not foreseeable, the employee should notify the Operator or the General Manager as soon as practicable (but generally at least two hours before the time scheduled to begin work).  Requests for leave (or for an extension of leave) should be submitted in writing to the Operator.  When leave is needed for planned medical treatment, the employee must try to schedule the treatment in such a way as to limit disruptions of the employee’s schedule. 

Employees must provide sufficient information for the Operator to determine if the leave may qualify for FMLA protection and the anticipated timing and duration of the leave.  Sufficient information may include that the employee is unable to perform job functions; the family member is unable to perform daily activities; the need for hospitalization or continuing treatment by a health care provider; or circumstances supporting the need for military family leave.  Employees also must inform the Operator if the requested leave is for a reason for which FMLA leave was previously taken or certified. 

Certification: 

Employees who need leave for the employee’s own serious health condition, a family member’s serious health condition or a serious injury or illness of a covered service member must provide medical certification of the serious health condition or injury from a health care provider.  We may, at our own discretion, also require a second or third opinion (at our expense), periodic re-certifications of a serious health condition, and, when the leave is the result of the employee’s own serious health condition, a fitness for duty report to return to work.  Employees who need leave due to an active duty exigency will also be required to provide a certification of such need.  If the employee fails to provide proper advance notice or certification for leave, the leave may be delayed or may not be designated as family and medical leave under this policy. 

When an employee requests leave, the Operator will inform the employee whether he or she is eligible under the FMLA.  If the employee is eligible, the notice will specify any additional information required and the employee’s rights and responsibilities.  If the employee is not eligible, the Operator will provide a reason for the ineligibility.  The Operator will also inform eligible employees whether or not their leave will be designated as FMLA-protected and the amount of leave counted against the employee’s FMLA leave entitlement.   

Compensation and Benefits During Leave: 

Family and medical leave is unpaid.  Depending on individual circumstances, an employee may be eligible for short-term disability, long-term disability or workers’ compensation insurance coverage while on FMLA leave.  

An employee’s use of family and medical leave will not result in the loss of any employment benefit that the employee earned or to which the employee was entitled before using family and medical leave.  

Job Reinstatement upon Return from Leave: 

Under most circumstances, upon return from family and medical leave, an employee will be reinstated to his or her previous position, or to an equivalent job with equivalent pay, benefits, and other employment terms and conditions.  However, an employee on family or medical leave does not have any greater right to reinstatement than if the employee had been continuously working during the leave period.  [Certain highly compensated “key employees” (as defined by the statute) may be denied reinstatement when necessary to prevent “substantial and grievous economic injury” to the Company’s operations.] 

An employee returning from leave due to his or her own serious health condition must provide a fitness-for-duty certification from his or her health care provider that he or she is able to resume work.  If the employee is returning from family and medical leave taken due to his or her own serious health condition, but is unable to perform the essential functions of the job because of a physical or mental disability as defined by law, we will attempt to provide a reasonable accommodation if possible. 

Additional Employee Rights Under the FMLA: 

The FMLA makes it unlawful for any employer to interfere with, restrain or deny the exercise of any right provided under the FMLA or to discharge or discriminate against any person for opposing any practice made unlawful by the FMLA or for involvement in any proceeding under or relating to the FMLA.  If employees have any concerns regarding their FMLA leave or their rights under the FMLA, they should feel free to talk with the Operator about those concerns.  An employee also may file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor or may bring a private lawsuit to enforce FMLA rights.  The FMLA does not affect any Federal or State law prohibiting discrimination, or supersede any State or local law which provides greater family or medical leave rights.