Washington FMLA help

Submitted by bmajeremy t3_yxilb3 in Washington

Hello all! Hoping someone can give me insight on if I qualify or not. I live in Washington state, but I work in Oregon. However, I am a traveler, so my tax status has always stayed in Washington state as my home state. I just had emergency surgery done and will be out of work for the next month or so. Do I qualify for the Washington FMLA or because my job's physical location is in Oregon I don't? Thank you :)

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lred1 t1_iwpnvpg wrote

Don't know about FMLA, but if you work in Oregon you pay Oregon state income taxes. You can't just designate your own tax status.

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bmajeremy OP t1_iwqt18c wrote

It has to do with being a traveling nurse. home tax status is different for us :)

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lred1 t1_iwwbzyi wrote

Would you mind elaborating on this? My wife and I are WA residents; she is a (regular employee) nurse, working in OR. Oregon state taxes are deducted from her pay. As a traveler, I assume your residency is still in WA; but where do you physically live/stay while working in OR -- in OR or WA?

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TVDinner360 t1_iwq4df9 wrote

Isn’t FMLA a federal law that protects your job while you’re out sick or caring for ill family members? I think covered employers are those with 50 or more employees, and it applies to all states.

But maybe you’re asking about something else. In any event, I wish you an easy recovery.

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Rocketgirl8097 t1_iwqih1i wrote

Washington state has a program on top of FMLA. Not only guarantees job but also pays a portion of your salary. As someone else said there are stipulations for qualifying. You have to have worked so many hours per year. You also have to pay the premium through payroll deduction. Since the employer is in Oregon likely the OP has not been paying it.

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IceDragonPlay t1_iwpss7p wrote

There is a paid leave Oregon program that starts next year, but I think nothing now other than any sick time and short term disability from your current employer. You probably need to apply for your time off under federal FMLA to protect your job, but that is just time off guarantee and no pay.

WA PFMLA requires that you have paid in through worked hours in Washington. If the premium is not coming out of your check then you will not qualify (min 820 hours worked and paid in to qualify). have you had any WA state pay since the program started?

ETA: If you are an independent contractor, there is a way to pay your own premiums to join the program, but You would know if you were paying the premium then.

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thegrizzlykitty t1_iwr5na2 wrote

PFML is what you are looking for. I would suspect that it depends on where the taxes are taken out. I believe they go back a year to determine eligibility. They are pretty hard to get on the phone and never reply to emails.

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spetey1004 t1_iwrztm6 wrote

Like someone else said if you’re paying into it through payroll deduction you should qualify. I would look at your last paystub and see if FMLA comes out. Mine says “WA - Paid Fam Med Leave Emp.” under my tax deductions portion.

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