Intermittent leave may be available if medically necessary for the employee’s own serious health condition or that of an immediate family member. Medical documentation must be provided prior to the approval of the leave. There are some special rules for instructional employees which may require the employee to take the leave all at once. Please consult with Human Resources for further information.

If you exhaust your available sick and personal leave, you can continue to be on leave but in an unpaid status.  If you are a member of the Sick Leave Bank, please check with your bargaining unit to inquire about using the sick bank.

Prior to going on an unpaid leave of absence, you may want to contact your employee group’s Sick Leave Bank Administrator. Under certain conditions and circumstances (as outlined in the Sick Leave Bank rules of procedure and administered by an approval committee), additional sick leave from the Bank may be granted.

Complete the paperwork for your leave situation regardless of whether or not you believe you may be eligible. HCPSS will review your leave request for approval.

Per HCPSS Policy 7100-IP, prior to returning to work, an employee on FMLA leave for his/her own serious health condition is required to submit a physician’s certification stating that the employee is able to perform the functions of the job.

FMLA is not automatically paid leave. Pay during FMLA leave is governed by HCPSS paid leave practices and by the provisions of paid leave outlined in our respective negotiated agreements. Eligible employees who exhaust all paid leave may still take approved FMLA as unpaid leave.

If you need to return to work prior to the end date of your approved leave of absence, you must contact the Office of Human Resources prior to reporting to work as well as provide an updated physician certification form. Without doing so, there is risk for negative payroll impact.

Completed forms should be sent directly to the Howard County Public Schools, Office of Human Resources. They may be faxed to 410-313-1565 or scanned and emailed to hrleaveofabsence@hcpss.org. Doctors’ offices may also fax the completed form directly to this office.

Eligible employees may take Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) for absences greater than three days for a qualifying condition. If eligible, FMLA will be applied to all qualifying temporary leaves of absence.