Leave Of Absence
Henry Ford Health System "HFHS" recognizes the need to balance employees' personal responsibilities, medical situations, educational needs and military service commitments with the operational needs of the System. HFHS complies with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) implementing regulations as revised effective January 16, 2009 and with all other Federal, State and Local rules and regulations related to the administration and implementation of leaves of absence programs
Please reference Policy 7.02 for eligibility and program guidelines.
Applying for a Leave of Absence
Extending My Leave of Absence
Returning from a Leave of Absence
Returning from a Leave of Absence with Restrictions
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For Managers Only
Cigna Manager Self Service Solution
The above link should be used to review the existing leave claims for your employees. Intermittent leave occurrences can now be submitted through CIGNA's online system.
For instructions to access CIGNA's Self Service, click on Manager Instructions for CIGNA's iAM Self Service link at the upper right side of this page.
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For all Employees applying for a Leave of Absence
If you need to apply for a leave of absence, please do the following:
1. Notify your supervisor at least 30 days in advance, or as soon as possible, of your need for a leave of absence (LOA). If this is a work-related injury, please contact your manager to complete an incident report. Incident Occurrence Form
2. Contact Cigna Medical Solutions to apply for a FMLA or Non-FMLA leave of absence at 1.888.84CIGNA (1.888-842-4462). CIGNA will approve or deny your request. (An approval of an employee's request for a non-FMLA medical leave of absence is a joint determination to be made on a case-by-case basis by the employee's supervisor and CIGNA.)
3. Review the Leave of Absence Policy 7.02 (you can obtain the policy by clicking on Human Resource Policy Manual) regarding your eligibility for LOA, duration, requirements, wage and benefit coverage and job status upon return. If you are unable to access the policy on-line, ask your manager or supervisor for a copy of the policy.
5. Beginning 9/1/09: HFHS LOA Forms will no longer be utilized for FMLA or Non-FMLA leaves. CIGNA administers this process.
6. Requests for Personal, Educational, or Military Leaves will require following form:
- Request for Leave of Absence (called LOA request form)
Complete section 1 of the "Request for Leave of Absence" form and return it to your supervisor. Your supervisor will approve or deny your request for LOA in accordance with HFHS policy. To access Forms, click here .
7. CTO Use - While on an approved LOA, you will initially be paid from your CTO bank. You must exhaust or reduce your CTO bank to 80 hours or less while on LOA (77.5 for Hap employees). For Workers’ Compensation claims, it is your choice to use CTO for the first week. Be certain to communicate your preference to your supervisor and/or timekeeper as well as CIGNA. See Workers' Compensation for more information.
8. Short Term Disability (STD) – If your approved LOA is due to your own medical condition, notify your manager and call CIGNA Disability Management Solutions directly to apply for your STD benefit. You must contact CIGNA as soon as possible, but no later than the 7th calendar day of your disability to start the claim process by calling 1-888-842-4462. See Short Term Disability for more information.
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Extending My Leave of Absence
If you are unable to return to work on the date your LOA expires, you must request an extension of your LOA within 3 business days of the date you are expected to return to work. If your LOA is due to your own medical condition and you are receiving a benefit from CIGNA, you must contact CIGNA Solutions to apply for an extension of your FMLA/Non-FMLA and/or STD benefit. If your LOA is for medical reasons, you may be required to provide additional documentation from your health care provider. It is your responsibility to keep your supervisor informed at all times of your estimated return to work date and to provide timely and appropriate medical documentation as required. Review the Leave of Absence Policy 7.02 for more information. (You can obtain the policy by clicking on Human Resource Policy Manual.)
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Returning from a Leave of Absence
For scheduling purposes, please contact your manager as soon as you are aware of your return date but no later than 3 business days of your return to work date. You will be required to provide medical documentation from a physician. Medical documentation must be provided, including dates of return to work. If you fail to return to work on the expiration date of your leave, it will be assumed that you do not intend to return to work and that you have voluntarily resigned.
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Returning from Leave of Absence with Restrictions
Many employees find that they can return to work with certain injury/medically related restrictions. If you find yourself in this situation, it is important to clearly communicate the restrictions to your manager well in advance of your return, as well as provide all medical documentation prepared by your physician. Medical documentation must include dates of return to work, applicable restrictions, approximate timeframe of restrictions, and date of next doctor's appointment if restrictions exist. You or your manager may contact the TWP program for possible accommodations to your restrictions. You may contact the Disability Management Coordinator at (313) 874-4638 or the Return to Work Specialist at 313-874-3879. See Transitional/Return to Work for more information
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Requests for
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