Are we required to change an employee’s schedule to part-time during her child bonding leave?

If an employee is a full-time employee, you are not required to accommodate her desire to work part-time.

However, if the employee is taking child bonding leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), the employee may take child bonding leave intermittently or on a reduced schedule which may result in the employee working part-time. Child bonding leave under the CFRA does not need to be taken in one continuous block of time.

There are specific requirements regarding intermittent child bonding leave under the CFRA. The basic minimum duration for child bonding leave is two weeks. However, an employer must grant a request for child bonding leave of less than two weeks' duration on any two occasions. The employer may also choose to grant requests for additional occasions of leave lasting less than two weeks.

Read more about “Intermittent Leave” in CFRA and FMLA Employer Coverage in the HR Library.

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