Enacted: 03/01/2024
Effective: 03/02/2024
Oregon has updated its regulations regarding the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA), which mandates employers to provide up to 12 weeks of leave to employees or qualifying family members within a year. Here are some takeaways:
- The final rules clarify definitions, uses for leave and when medical verification can be requested.
- They also add “by affinity” to the list of qualifying family members for whom an employee may use OFLA leave.
- The rules also clarify that for an employee to take parental or sick child leave under the OFLA, the child receiving care must be under 18 or an adult dependent child substantially limited by a physical or mental impairment.
- The definition of “serious health condition” has been amended to include pregnancy termination, fertility or infertility treatments, and pregnancy disability leave.
The “leave year” to designate OFLA leave is a one-year period, beginning the Sunday immediately preceding the date on which the leave commences. Employers must provide 30 days notice of their need for foreseeable OFLA leave and must provide as much notice as possible when advance notice is not practicable. The rules also remove certain limitations on the number of weeks an employee can take in OFLA leave to deal with the death of a family member and concurrent use of OFLA leave for the deaths of multiple family members.
The final rules of OFLA have clarified that employers may not require medical verification for parental leave, sick-child leave due to public health emergencies, or bereavement. Employers may provisionally designate an absence as OFLA leave until sufficient information is received, and nonmedical verification must be requested within five days of the leave request or when the employer learns that the leave may be OFLA-qualifying. If an employee has taken sick-child leave for three consecutive days in one leave year, medical verification from a health care provider may be required on the fourth or subsequent day. Medical verification of OFLA leave is binding, and employers cannot require a second opinion. The final rules also amend the process for verifying an employee’s return to work after leave taken for their own serious health condition.
POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS
Review and revise, if necessary, leave policies, handbooks, forms and leave administration procedures relating to OFLA leave and sick leave to conform to the final rules’ requirements.
References for additional information:
BLI_9-2024TrackedChanges-PAO.pdf (oregon.gov)
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