How to Apply for FMLA Parental Leave in Louisiana Quickly

Preparing for a new family member, whether through pregnancy or adoption, is an exciting and overwhelming time for families. Upon the arrival of a child, parents understandably want to stay home to begin the bonding process and adjust to the new sweeping changes in their lives. In order to get time off after the arrival of a new child, many families must apply for FMLA Louisiana.

This can be a tedious and stressful process, but DoNotPay, the world's first robot lawyer, can make the entire process much easier with just a few minutes of your time.

What is FMLA?

FMLA, or the Family and Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993 and protects your position at a company if you have to leave work for a long period of time due to personal or family medical conditions. Unfortunately, FMLA does not mean that you will receive pay for the time you have to take off from work, but it does ensure that your job will still be there for you when you return. Individuals are entitled to up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year under FMLA.

When it comes to parental leave, FMLA allows parents to use those 12 weeks to bond with your new child, but you may have to dip into sick leave or vacation to take more or paid time off.

Who qualifies for FMLA?

In order to qualify for FMLA, both you and your place of employment must meet a few specific requirements. These include:

• You have worked at your employer for at least a year
• You clocked in at least 1,250 hours in the past 12 months
• Your employer has 50 or more employees

Additionally, providing your employer with 30 days notice can help your FMLA parental leave case, especially since parents know well in advance when they can expect to need time off. When it comes to unforeseen medical emergencies, giving your employer as much notice as possible is important too.

Many companies provide their employees with some form of paid parental leave, and it is becoming more and more mainstream to do so. Before applying for FMLA, check with your work policies to see if you qualify for paid parental leave instead of, or in conjunction with, FMLA. DoNotPay can also help you with this!

How to apply for FMLA Louisiana on your own

Although it's challenging to apply for FMLA on your own, it is possible with some time and effort. To apply for FMLA Louisiana on your own, follow these five steps:

1. Confirm that your situation or medical condition gives you eligibility for FMLA
2. Create a document that outlines your situation or condition
3. Inform your employer of your FMLA eligibility
4. Get a medical certification or proof of situation
5. Give your employer your FMLA designation notification

Five steps might not seem like much, but it can be difficult to figure out whether your situation qualifies you for FMLA and how to document and prove your need for it.

How to apply for FMLA Louisiana with DoNotPay

If you would rather not spend your precious time carrying out all of those tasks on your own, you can complete the process in just a few minutes by using DoNotPay instead.

How to request parental leave using DoNotPay:

1. Tell us which state you work in (if you work in CA, NY, NJ, MA, WA, or DC, your state has a paid family leave program). 
2. Choose whether you want us to apply to the program for you or contact your employer with your leave request. If you want to apply for the program, we will walk you through the questions on the form and mail the application form for you. 
3. If you want us to contact your employer, enter your leave details, including the starting date, number of weeks of leave, and how many weeks of paid leave you are requesting (for example, you may take a 12 week leave, but only request 8 weeks of paid leave to make the request reasonable). 
4. Indicate whether you are the birth parent or not (birth parents have a few additional legal protections). 
5. Enter the name of your company and the person to address this request to. 
6. Select whether you want us to email the request to your employer on your behalf. 

Not in Louisiana? Check your state’s specific FMLA requirements:

What else can DoNotPay do?

Besides requesting parental FMLA, DoNotPay can perform hundreds of other functions for you in minutes. Other DoNotPay services include:

• Filing a complaint
• Creating sick leave requests
• Reducing property taxes
• Obtaining burner phones
• And so much more

If you have a long to-do list full of mundane or complicated tasks, visit DoNotPay today to see how we can help.