How Families First Coronavirus Response Act Interacts with Family and Medical Leave Act & California Family Rights Act

Emergency Family Leave is a new leave reason under the FMLA, and is not intended to provide additional weeks of leave. An employee who has already used 12 weeks of leave under the FMLA is not able to use Emergency Family Leave.

The qualifying reason for leave – to care for an employee’s child whose school or childcare provider is closed or unavailable for reasons related to COVID-19 – is not a qualifying reason under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). Therefore, leave taken pursuant to Emergency Family Leave cannot be run concurrently with CFRA and an employee can use 12 weeks of Emergency Family Leave and still have 12 weeks of CFRA leave available.

The FFCRA makes clear that the paid leave provisions required under the Act are in addition to existing leave available to employees. Employers should track other leaves available in tandem with the FFCRA including:

· FMLA – Concurrent with EFMLEA.

· CFRA – Consecutive with EFMLEA.

See discussion below related to FMLA and CFRA as applied to COVID-19 issues.