This law provides employees with up to 6 weeks of paid family leave at two-thirds of weekly salary up to a state maximum dollar amount. Paid leave may be available for employees who are needed at home in order to care for a newborn or adopted child or to care for a sick family member.
The program will be funded through payroll deductions. The tax will appear on the employee’s pay stub and YESS as NJ FLI/EE.
Paid family leave will run concurrently with all other family leave programs. Family Leave Insurance benefits can be claimed in order to:
- Bond with a child during the first 12 months after the child’s birth or during the first 12 months after the placement of the child for adoption with the covered individual.
- Care for a family member with a serious health condition supported by a certification provided by a health care provider. Claims can be filed for six consecutive weeks, for intermittent weeks or for 42 intermittent days during a 12 month period beginning with the first date of the claim.
Resources for parents may be found here: Parents Resource Guide and here: On-site Lactation Rooms
Family Leave Facts
- The Family Leave Insurance benefits program provides a monetary benefit, not a leave entitlement.
- The Family Leave Insurance program does not guarantee job protection although an individual may be protected if the individual qualifies for protection under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA).
- An employee who intends to take a leave and claim Family Leave Insurance Benefits to participate in providing care for a seriously ill family member must give the employer reasonable notice. An employee who intends to take the leave on an intermittent basis must provide the employer with a minimum of 15 days’ notice.
- An employee who intends to take a leave and claim Family Leave Insurance Benefits to participate in providing care for a seriously ill family member must provide medical certification from the family member’s doctor.
- An employee who intends to take a leave and claim Family Leave Insurance Benefits to bond with a newborn or newly adopted child must give the employer 30 days notice prior to the beginning of the leave. Intermittent leave to bond with a newborn or newly adopted child must be taken in periods of seven days or more and the schedule must be agreed to by the employee and the employer.
Benefit Limitations
The first seven days following the filing of a claim is the waiting week. No benefits can be paid for this week until benefits have been paid for each of the three weeks immediately following the waiting week. If a period of family leave immediately follows an eligible period of temporary disability for the individual’s own illness, there is no waiting period for the Family Leave Insurance claim.
No Family Leave Insurance benefits are payable under the State Plan for the following:
- Any period the claimant receives temporary disability benefits
- Any period the claimant receives unemployment benefits
- Any period the claimant receives full salary or paid time off
- Any period the claimant is working
More information concerning the benefit limitations may be found on the Family Leave Insurance web site. You may also email the Office of Human Resources at kingt@tcnj.edu.
How to Apply for Benefits
Applications will be available in the Office of Human Resources and at the Department of Labor and Workforce Development web site at http://lwd.state.nj.us/labor/index.html.