How to Apply for FMLA Leave In West Virginia

Changes in your family can be exciting if you are welcoming a new baby or child through birth, adoption or foster care. It can be scary and overwhelming if you are caring for a family member with serious health issues, especially if you need to take significant time off work. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was created to protect parents and caregivers. If you work in West Virginia, particularly in the public-sector, and are curious about FMLA West Virginia benefits and laws, DoNotPay can help you understand your options. 

What is The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Do You Qualify?

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal labor law that was enacted in 1993 to protect individuals who need to take a leave of absence from work for specific family and medical reasons.

What is Covered Under FMLA?

The FMLA requires that certain employers give eligible employees up to a total of 12 weeks of unpaid leave during a 12-month period in the following circumstances:

• Birth, adoption or foster care placement of a child (time taken for pregnancy complications can be counted against FLMA leave)
• To care for an immediate family member with a serious health condition
• To take time off for their own serious health condition
• Certain issues that affect members of the armed services/their family

When the leave is up, the employee is entitled to return to their original position, or to an equivalent job with similar benefits, working conditions and pay. 

Which employees can take FMLA? 

Employees are eligible to file an FMLA claim if:

• They have worked at their employer for at least 12 months
• They have worked at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months
• They work at a location where the company has 50+ employees within 75 miles
• All federal, state and local public agencies are covered, regardless of number of employees (including public and private schools).

Who is Eligible for Parental Leave in West Virginia?

West Virginia does not have a paid parental leave law. West Virginia's Parental Leave Act offers state and county employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period. They must exhaust their entire annual and personal leave first, but public employees can extend their FMLA time by using their paid leave first, which allows for more time off. Individual companies may offer parental benefits or short-term disability benefits/insurance, but it is not federally mandated.

How to Apply for FMLA in West Virginia

Filing for FMLA in West Virginia is not difficult in theory, but there is some paperwork involved. You are required to give at least 30 days notice to your employer if the reason is foreseeable. Events that are foreseeable could be a scheduled surgery, adoption placement, or the expected birth of a child. If the need is less than 30 days away, you should still notify your employer as soon as possible.

1. Contact your Human Resources (HR) department as soon as possible when you know you will apply for FMLA.
2. You will need to take a FMLA Medical Certification Form to your health care provider. It helps ensure the validity of the request.
3. Return the FMLA form within 15 calendar days.
4. When communicating with HR about FMLA, you can discuss if you have any paid leave options, whether offered by the company, or by taking your personal paid leave.
5. Your employee has the right to request a second opinion at their own expense, and there are some circumstances for which FMLA could be denied.

It is important to make sure you follow the FMLA requirements and your company's policies to ensure that the FMLA request process goes quickly and without problems. 

Request FMLA in West Virginia with the help of DoNotPay

Understanding FMLA policies and what additional rights you might have in West Virginia can be confusing. Maybe you are overwhelmed by researching FMLA laws, are getting the runaround from your HR department, or perhaps you are already in a family medical emergency and need to apply immediately. DoNotPay can help you through the process.

How to request parental leave using DoNotPay:

If you want to request parental leave but don't know where to start, DoNotPay has you covered in 6 easy steps:

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.

    

Why Should You Use DoNotPay to Request FMLA in West Virginia?

DoNotPay makes the entire process of understanding and filing for FMLA fast, easy and hassle free. You don't have to do all the research or even do the requests. We will walk you through the process and even contact your employer on your behalf. You can focus on your family, and we will take care of your FMLA needs. 

What Else Can DoNotPay do for you? 

No matter where you live, or where you may move to in the future, we can help you with FMLA protection. Whether it's California, Florida, New York, or New Jersey, or any other state, DoNotPay has the expertise to walk you through the process successfully. We will help you understand your rights and help you file FMLA requests at any time if you are eligible.

Check your state’s specific FMLA policy below:

Helping you navigate the FMLA process is just one of the many things DoNotPay can do for you. We can request sick leave or file a complaint, or resolve a number of other work-related issues.

Whatever your needs, DoNotPay can help.