[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 29, Volume 3]

[Revised as of July 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 29CFR825.203]



[Page 760-761]

 

                             TITLE 29--LABOR

 

         CHAPTER V--WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

 

PART 825_THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993--Table of Contents

 

 Subpart B_What Leave Is an Employee Entitled To Take Under the Family 

                         and Medical Leave Act?

 

Sec.  825.203  Does FMLA leave have to be taken all at once, or can it be 

taken in parts?



    (a) FMLA leave may be taken ``intermittently or on a reduced leave 

schedule'' under certain circumstances. Intermittent leave is FMLA leave 

taken in separate blocks of time due to a single qualifying reason. A 

reduced leave schedule is a leave schedule that reduces an employee's 

usual number of working hours per workweek, or hours per workday. A 

reduced leave schedule is a change in the employee's schedule for a 

period of time, normally from full-time to part-time.

    (b) When leave is taken after the birth or placement of a child for 

adoption or foster care, an employee may take leave intermittently or on 

a reduced leave schedule only if the employer agrees. Such a schedule 

reduction might occur, for example, where an employee, with the 

employer's agreement, works part-time after the



[[Page 761]]



birth of a child, or takes leave in several segments. The employer's 

agreement is not required, however, for leave during which the mother 

has a serious health condition in connection with the birth of her child 

or if the newborn child has a serious health condition.

    (c) Leave may be taken intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule 

when medically necessary for planned and/or unanticipated medical 

treatment of a related serious health condition by or under the 

supervision of a health care provider, or for recovery from treatment or 

recovery from a serious health condition. It may also be taken to 

provide care or psychological comfort to an immediate family member with 

a serious health condition.

    (1) Intermittent leave may be taken for a serious health condition 

which requires treatment by a health care provider periodically, rather 

than for one continuous period of time, and may include leave of periods 

from an hour or more to several weeks. Examples of intermittent leave 

would include leave taken on an occasional basis for medical 

appointments, or leave taken several days at a time spread over a period 

of six months, such as for chemotherapy. A pregnant employee may take 

leave intermittently for prenatal examinations or for her own condition, 

such as for periods of severe morning sickness. An example of an 

employee taking leave on a reduced leave schedule is an employee who is 

recovering from a serious health condition and is not strong enough to 

work a full-time schedule.

    (2) Intermittent or reduced schedule leave may be taken for absences 

where the employee or family member is incapacitated or unable to 

perform the essential functions of the position because of a chronic 

serious health condition even if he or she does not receive treatment by 

a health care provider.

    (d) There is no limit on the size of an increment of leave when an 

employee takes intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule. 

However, an employer may limit leave increments to the shortest period 

of time that the employer's payroll system uses to account for absences 

or use of leave, provided it is one hour or less. For example, an 

employee might take two hours off for a medical appointment, or might 

work a reduced day of four hours over a period of several weeks while 

recuperating from an illness. An employee may not be required to take 

more FMLA leave than necessary to address the circumstance that 

precipitated the need for the leave, except as provided in Sec. Sec.  

825.601 and 825.602.