Skip to main content
parent square button we tip button Parent Vue Button
Human Resources » Paid Parental Leave FAQs

Paid Parental Leave FAQs

Both FMLA and CFRA allow for unpaid child-bonding leave, which is leave taken within the first year after the birth of a new child, or placement of a child for adoption or foster care. The Education Code allows certificated, academic and classified employees to use up to 12 workweeks of sick leave to bond with a new child. In addition, covered employees may be entitled to partial pay for the remainder of the 12 workweeks if they have insufficient sick leave.
 
General Provisions
Parental leave is leave taken for the birth of a child of the employee or the placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care. Each eligible parent is entitled to parental leave regardless of marital status, even if they are employed by the same district or county office. 
Paid parental leave (commonly known as "AB 2393") is included in the Education Code, allowing certificated, academic, and classified employees to use sick leave and possibly receive substitute differential or 50% pay for up to 12 workweeks of "paid parental leave." 
The statutes are Education Code §§44977.5 (certificated), 45196.1 (K-12 classified), 87780.1 (academic), and 88196.1 (community college classified). 
The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) and the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) do not include paid parental leave. The new statutes are intended to coordinate with the otherwise unpaid child-bonding leaves under CFRA and FMLA. 
All persons employed in K-12 and county office certificated and classified positions and community college academic and classified positions are covered by the statutes. This includes administrative, managerial, supervisory and confidential positions.
Any certificated, academic, or classified employee may use up to 12 workweeks of current and accumulated sick leave for parental leave. The employee may use his/her sick leave for parental leave even if he/she is not eligible for child-bonding leave under FMLA (federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993) or CFRA (California Family Rights Act).

An employee wants to take 12 workweeks of parental leave but does not have 12 workweeks of sick leave. Will the employee be paid for the rest of the time?
 
If an employee wants to take 12 workweeks of parental leave but does not have 12 workweeks of sick leave, he/she may be entitled to partial pay for the remainder. The employee must:
•    Exhaust all of his/her sick leave; and
•    Be partially eligible for child-bonding leave under CFRA. The employee must have been employed by the district or county office for at least 12 months (which do not have to be consecutive) prior to commencing the leave and not have used 12 workweeks of CFRA leave. The employee does not have to have worked 1,250 hours in the prior 12 months.
Assuming the employee meets those requirements, he/she will receive either substitute differential pay or 50% pay for the remainder of the 12 workweeks after sick leave is exhausted. The type of pay is based on the rule the district/county office has adopted for extended illness leave. If the district or county office has adopted the substitute differential pay rule, effective January 1, 2019, the employee is entitled to 50% of his/her salary or substitute differential pay, whichever is greater. 
If the collective bargaining agreement grants greater rights to employees, that language still applies. If it provides fewer rights to employees, then the laws supersede the contract language.
An employer may require documentation demonstrating that the employee is the biological, adoptive, or foster parent of a child and that it is less than 12 months since the birth or placement for adoption or foster care. 

Interaction with Pregnancy Disability Leave

None, except that the employee is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The employee is not required to have been employed for any specified period of time or worked a minimum number of hours. 
Paid parental leave does not affect an employee's right to take leave while disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. An employee who has taken pregnancy disability leave remains entitled to paid parental leave under the same terms as other employees.
No. Education Code§§ 44977, 45196, 87780, and 88196 require an employee to exhaust full paid sick leave before receiving extended illness leave. 
If she has given birth, she is entitled to leave for the disability caused by pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. Once she is released by her physician, she is entitled to the same amount of child-bonding leave (12 workweeks) as the other parent. 
First, review the applicable collective bargaining agreement to see its notice requirements. If it is silent, under FMLA and CFRA an employee intending to take leave for the birth of a child is required to give at least 30 calendar days' notice of the due date. An employee has no obligation to tell her supervisor or the district that she is pregnant unless she is seeking the protection of the pregnancy disability law (Government Code§ 12945), such-as when she needs time off or reasonable accommodations at work. A pregnant employee is not required to stop working until her physician states that she is medically unable to work. 
She is entitled to pregnancy disability leave while actually disabled by the pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. She is not entitled to paid parental/child bonding leave because she is not keeping custody of the child. 
No, unless the surrogate is their minor child, or their adult child with an ADA disability and incapable of self-care. Family leave is available to care for ill parents, spouses, minor children, and rarely, adult children. (See below for parental leave.)
No, unless the daughter suffers from an ADA disability and is incapable of self-care. An employee may not take family leave to care for an adult child unless the absence is related to the child's military service or the child has an ADA-protected disability and is incapable of self-care. A normal pregnancy does not qualify. An employee can, however, use up to one-half of his/her annual sick leave to care for his/her daughter and/or grandchild under Labor Code§ 233.

Paid Parental Leave

Employees are entitled to a maximum of 12 workweeks of parental leave in a 12-month period. Paid parental leave under the Education Code counts against the 12 workweeks of CFRA child­bonding leave. 
No. In order to qualify for substitute differential or 50% pay for parental leave an employee must exhaust all sick leave. 
No. Sections 45196:1 and 88196.1 do not require an employee to use any or all of his/her vacation for parental/child-bonding leave. If an employee chooses to use vacation for parental/child-bonding leave, that time will count against the 12 workweeks of CFRA child­bonding leave. 
Yes, if the employee is eligible for CFRA leave. The employee must have been employed for at least 12 months (which do not have to be consecutive), have actually worked 1,250 hours in the 12 months prior to taking the leave, not have used his/her 12 workweeks of leave for the year, and work at a location where there are at least 50 or more employees in a 75-rnile radius. 
If the employee takes unpaid CFRA child-bonding leave, that time will count against any paid parental leave the employee might want to take. An employee is only entitled to 12 workweeks of paid and unpaid child bonding/parental leave combined. 
No. Paid parental/CFRA child bonding leave must be taken in blocks of at least 2 weeks, except twice when it can be taken for a shorter period. 
No. Paid parental/child-bonding leave is only for the parent, not grandparent.
Yes. An employee is entitled to paid parental/child-bonding leave as long as the child is the employee's biological, adopted, or foster child. An employee is not entitled to family leave to care for his/her partner. 
A new parent, whether biological, adoptive, or foster, is entitled to paid parental/child-bonding leave if qualified under CFRA and the Education Code. 
No, the leave is not per child, it is per 12 months. 
No. FMLA runs concurrently with pregnancy disability leave and CFRA child-bonding leave. An employee is only entitled to 12 workweeks of paid parental/child bonding leave. 
The substitute differential pay/50% pay leave available under AB 2393 is in addition to the 5 months/I 00 days of extended illness leave that an employee may use only for his/her own illness or injury. 
No. Child bonding leave under FMLA and CFRA is available only until the child's first birthday or if it is an adoption or foster placement, the employee has had custody of the child for 12 months. 
If both parents work for the district, how much paid parental/child bonding leave is each entitled to? 
Each parent is entitled to 12 workweeks of paid parental/child bonding leave even if they have the same employer. This is because of conflicting language in the FJ\1LA and CFRA. 
No. Paid parental/CFRA child-bonding leave is for bi1ih, adoption, or foster care of a child. Foster care requires state action, not just an agreement between the parent and temporary guardian. An 
employee may, however, take family leave to act as a guardian to the grandchild, such as arranging new childcare or school, attending school meetings, or engaging in other activities that arise because the employee's child has deployed overseas. If the employee's grandchild is ill, the employee may take family leave to care for him or her. An employee may also use one-half of his/her annual sick leave to care for his/her ill grandchild (regardless of whether you have custody) or take him/her to medical appointments.

Adoption and Foster Care

No. The employee has already had 12 workweeks to bond with this child and it has been more than 12 months since the child was placed with the employee. The change in legal status does not entitle the employee to additional leave. An employee may take family leave for activities related to the adoption, such as court appearances and meetings with social workers. 
No. The 12 months start running from the point where the employee receives custody of the child. Whether the adoption has been finalized does not change the amount of leave. 
Yes. However, the employee only receives 12 workweeks total for completing these tasks and for bonding once the employee receives the child. 
Yes, within reasonable limits. While a week or two might be necessary to complete the process, adding in an extended vacation prior to obtaining custody would not be covered.