Current through December 12, 2024
For purposes of sections 31-51qq-1 to 31-51qq-52, inclusive, of
the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies:
(a) "Act," "Family and Medical Leave Act" or
"FMLA" means sections 31-51kk to 31-51qq, inclusive, of the Connecticut General
Statutes.
(b) "ADA" means the
Americans with Disabilities Act,
42 USC sections
12101 to
12213, inclusive, as
amended.
(c) "Armed Forces" has the
same meaning as provided in section 27-103(a) of the Connecticut General
Statutes.
(d) "Commissioner" means
the Labor Commissioner of the State of Connecticut, whose mailing address is
200 Folly Brook Boulevard, Wethersfield, Connecticut, 06109, or his or her
designee.
(e) "Eligible employee"
means an employee who, immediately preceding the date the FMLA leave will
commence pursuant to his or her request for leave, has been employed for a
total of at least three (3) consecutive months, as defined in section
31-51qq-6(b)
of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, by the employer from whom
FMLA leave is requested.
(f)
"Employ" means to allow or permit to work.
(g) "Employee" means any person engaged in
service to an employer in the State of Connecticut in the business of the
employer.
(h) "Employer" means any
person engaged in any activity, enterprise or business in the State of
Connecticut who employs one (1) or more employees. An employer covered by the
Act includes, from the first employee's date of hire:
(1) Any person who acts, directly or
indirectly, in the interest of an employer to any of the employees of such
employer; or
(2) Any successor in
interest of an employer.
(3) The
term "employer" does not include a municipality, a local or regional board of
education, or a nonpublic elementary or secondary school.
(i) "Employment benefits" means:
(1) All benefits provided or made available
to employees by an employer, including group life insurance, health insurance,
disability insurance, sick leave, annual leave, educational benefits and
pensions, regardless of whether such benefits are provided by practice or
written policy of an employer or through an "employee benefit plan" as defined
in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974,
29
USC 1002(3).
(2) The term does not include non-employment
related obligations paid by employees through voluntary deductions such as
supplemental insurance coverage.
(j) "FEPA" means the Fair Employment
Practices Act, sections 46a-51 to 46a-104, inclusive, of the Connecticut
General Statutes.
(k) "Family
member" means:
(1) A spouse, sibling, son or
daughter, grandparent, grandchild or parent; or
(2) An individual related to the employee by
blood or affinity whose close association the employee describes as equivalent
to the family relationships of a spouse, sibling, son or daughter, grandparent,
grandchild or parent, regardless of biological or legal relationship or lack
thereof.
(l) "FLSA"
means the Fair Labor Standards Act,
29
USC 201 to
219,
inclusive.
(m) "Grandchild" means a
grandchild related to a person by (1) blood, (2) marriage, (3) adoption by a
child of the grandparent, or (4) foster care by a child of the
grandparent.
(n) "Grandparent"
means a grandparent related to a person by (1) blood, (2) marriage, (3)
adoption of minor child by a child of the grandparent, or (4) foster care by a
child of the grandparent.
(o)
"Health care provider" means:
(1) A doctor of
medicine or osteopathy who is authorized to practice medicine or surgery by the
state in which the doctor practices;
(2) a podiatrist, dentist, psychologist,
optometrist or chiropractor authorized to practice by the state in which such
person practices and performing within the scope of the authorized
practice;
(3) an advanced practice
registered nurse, nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, clinical social worker or
physician's assistant authorized to practice by the state in which such person
practices and performing within the scope of the authorized practice;
(4) a Christian Science practitioner listed
with the First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, Massachusetts;
(5) any health care provider from whom an
employer or a group health plan's benefits manager will accept certification of
the existence of a serious health condition to substantiate a claim for
benefits;
(6) a health care
provider as defined in subdivisions (1) to (5), inclusive, of this subsection
who practices in a country other than the United States and who is licensed to
practice in accordance with the laws and regulations of that country;
or
(7) such other health care
provider as the Commissioner determines, performing within the scope of the
authorized practice.
(p) "In loco parentis" includes, but is not
limited to, persons with day-to-day responsibilities to care for or financially
support a child or, in the case of an employee, who had such responsibility for
the employee when the employee was a child. A biological or legal relationship
is not necessary.
(q) "Incapacity"
means inability to work, attend school or perform other regular daily
activities due to a serious health condition, treatment therefor, or recovery
therefrom.
(r) "Intermittent leave"
means family or medical leave taken in separate periods of time due to a single
qualifying reason, rather than for one (1) continuous period of time.
Intermittent leave may include periods from an hour or more to several weeks.
Examples of intermittent leave include leave taken on an occasional basis for
medical appointments, or leave taken several days at a time spread over a
period of six (6) months, such as for chemotherapy.
(s) "Labor Department" means the State of
Connecticut Department of Labor.
(t) "Medical leave" means a leave of absence,
which may be unpaid, due to a serious health condition of an eligible
employee.
(u) "Parent" means a
biological parent, foster parent, adoptive parent, stepparent, parent-inlaw or
legal guardian of an eligible employee or an eligible employee's spouse, an
individual standing in loco parentis to an eligible employee, or an individual
who stood in loco parentis to the eligible employee when the employee was a
child.
(v) "Person" means one or
more individuals, partnerships, associations, corporations, business trusts,
legal representatives, or organized groups of persons.
(w) "Reduced schedule leave" means a leave
schedule that reduces the usual number of hours per workweek, or hours per
workday, of an employee.
(x)
"Serious health condition" means an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or
mental condition that involves inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, nursing
home or residential medical care facility; or continuing treatment, including
outpatient treatment, by a health care provider. For the purposes of this
section:
(1) An illness, injury, impairment,
or physical or mental condition involves:
(A)
Inpatient care (i.e., an overnight stay) in a hospital, as defined in section
19a-490 of the Connecticut General Statutes, hospice licensed pursuant to the
public health code or certified as a hospice pursuant to
42
USC 1395x, nursing home licensed pursuant to
Chapter 368v of the Connecticut General Statutes, or residential medical care
facility, including any period of incapacity or any subsequent treatment in
connection with such inpatient care; or
(B) Continuing treatment by a health care
provider, including outpatient treatment. A serious health condition involving
continuing treatment by a health care provider includes:
(i) A period of incapacity of more than three
(3) consecutive calendar days, including any subsequent treatment or period of
incapacity relating to the same condition, that also involves:
(I) Treatment two (2) or more times,
including outpatient treatment, not later than thirty (30) days after the first
day of incapacity, unless extenuating circumstances exist, by a health care
provider or by a nurse or physician's assistant under direct supervision of a
health care provider, or by a provider of health care services under orders of,
or on referral by, a health care provider; or
(II) Treatment by a health care provider on
at least one (1) occasion, which results in a regimen of continuing treatment
under the supervision of the health care provider, including outpatient
treatment
.
(III)
The requirement in subparagraphs (B)(i)(I) and (B)(i)(II) of this subdivision
for treatment by a health care provider means an in-person or telemedicine
visit to a health care provider, provided that the first (or only) in-person or
telemedicine treatment visit occurs not later than seven (7) days after the
first day of incapacity.
(ii) Any period of incapacity due to
pregnancy, or for prenatal care.
(iii) Any period of incapacity or treatment
for such incapacity due to a chronic serious health condition. A chronic
serious health condition is one which:
(I)
Requires periodic visits, including telemedicine, of at least twice per year
for treatment by a health care provider, or by a nurse or physician's assistant
under direct supervision of a health care provider;
(II) Continues over an extended period of
time, including recurring episodes of a single underlying condition;
and
(III) May cause episodic rather
than a continuing period of incapacity (e.g., asthma, diabetes,
epilepsy).
(iv) A period
of incapacity which is permanent or long-term due to a condition for which
treatment may not be effective. The employee or family member must be under the
continuing supervision of, but need not be receiving active treatment by, a
health care provider. Examples include Alzheimer's, a severe stroke, or the
terminal stages of a disease.
(v)
Any period of absence to receive multiple treatments, including any period of
recovery therefrom, by a health care provider or by a provider of health care
services under orders of, or on referral by, a health care provider, either for
restorative surgery after an accident or other injury, or for a condition that
would likely result in a period of incapacity of more than three (3)
consecutive calendar days in the absence of medical intervention or treatment,
such as cancer (chemotherapy, radiation), severe arthritis (physical therapy),
kidney disease (dialysis).
(2) Treatment for purposes of subdivision (1)
of this subsection includes, but is not limited to, examinations to determine
if a serious health condition exists and evaluations of the condition.
Treatment does not include routine physical examinations, eye examinations, or
dental examinations. Under subdivision (1)(B)(i)(II) of this subsection, a
regimen of continuing treatment includes, for example, a course of prescription
medication such as antibiotics or therapy requiring special equipment to
resolve or alleviate the health condition such as oxygen. A regimen of
continuing treatment that includes the taking of over-the-counter medications
or bed rest, drinking fluids, exercise, and other similar activities that can
be initiated without a visit to a health care provider, is not, by itself,
sufficient to constitute a regimen of continuing treatment for purposes of FMLA
leave.
(3) Any condition that meets
one (1) of the definitions of "serious health condition" as defined in this
subsection including a mental health condition, shall be a qualifying reason
for leave under the Act.
(4)
Substance abuse may be a serious health condition if the conditions of this
subsection are met. However, FMLA leave may only be taken for treatment for
substance abuse by a health care provider or by a provider of health care
services on referral by a health care provider. On the other hand, absence
because of the employee's use of the substance, rather than for treatment, does
not qualify for FMLA leave.
(5)
Absences attributable to incapacity under subdivisions (1)(B)(ii), (1)(B)(iii)
or (1)(B)(iv) of this subsection qualify for FMLA leave even though the
employee or the covered family member does not receive treatment from a health
care provider during the absence, and even if the absence does not last more
than three (3) days. For example, an employee with asthma may be unable to
report for work due to the onset of an asthma attack or because the employee's
health care provider has advised the employee to stay home when the pollen
count exceeds a certain level. An employee who is pregnant may be unable to
report to work because of severe morning sickness.
(y) "Serious injury or illness" shall have
the meaning set forth in section 31-51qq-50(c) of the Regulations of
Connecticut State Agencies.
(z)
"Sibling" means the biological brother, biological sister, half-brother,
half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, adopted brother, adopted sister, foster
brother, foster sister, brother-inlaw or sister-in-law of the eligible employee
or the eligible employee's spouse.
(aa) "Son or daughter" means, for purposes of
FMLA leave taken for birth, adoption or foster-care placement, to care for a
family member with a serious health condition or for a qualifying exigency, as
described in section 31-51qq-49 of the Regulations of Connecticut State
Agencies, a biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild, legal ward, or, in
the alternative, a child of a person standing in loco parentis, as defined in
subsection (p) of this section, or an individual to whom the employee stood in
loco parentis when the individual was a child. A son or daughter may be of any
age. (For the purposes of military caregiver leave, "son or daughter" is
defined in section 31-51qq-50(d)(1) of the Regulations of Connecticut State
Agencies)
(bb) "Spouse" means a
person to whom one is legally married.