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About KPL

Paid Medical Leave Policy

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Effective March 29, 2019, this Paid Medical Leave (“PML”) policy will take effect and will work in coordination with KPL’s existing time off policies.  This policy is prompted by and intended to comply with Michigan’s new Paid Medical Leave Act (“PMLA”).  

“Eligibility” and “Accrual” of PML:  

Effective March 29, 2019, this policy will apply to non-represented, non-exempt employees regularly scheduled to work 25 or more hours per week (or who worked 25 hours or more per week, on average, over the preceding calendar year).  Beginning July 1, 2019, all non-represented, non-exempt hourly employees will be eligible to accrue PML under the terms of this policy. 

This policy does not apply to otherwise eligible employees who already accrue 40 or more hours of paid time off each fiscal year (e.g. vacation, sick, float etc.).  Such employees will, however, be allowed each fiscal year to use up to 40 hours of their paid time off as set forth in the PMLA (See, PMLA poster posted on the bulletin board in employee break areas). 

Eligible employees will accrue PML at the rate of 1 hour of PML for every 35 hours worked (time for which you are paid, but do not work [e.g. PML, vacation, holiday, etc.] does not count toward “hours worked”), but capped at not more than 1 hour of PML accrued per week and 40 hours of PML accrued per benefit year 

The “benefit” year is KPL’s “fiscal” year (July 1 – June 30).   

Eligible employees employed as of 3/29/19 may use PML as it is accrued.  New employees hired after 3/29/19 will begin accruing PML as of their hire date but may not use any PML until the employee has worked 90 days. 

At the end of each benefit/fiscal year the team member may carry over up to 40 hours of PML into his/her new benefit/fiscal year. 

Utilizing PML: 

An eligible employee with accrued and unused PML may take PML for all of the purposes and family members set forth in the PMLA. (PMLA poster posted on the bulletin board in employee break areas). 

In addition, an employee may use his/her accrued and unused PML: 

  • for the death (i.e. make arrangements, travel, attend funeral, etc.) of a family member as referenced in the PMLA; 
  • for an emergency occasioned by a natural disaster (e.g. tornado, flooding, etc., but excluding winter weather). 

PML must be used in no less than 30 minute increments. 

An eligible employee can use up to, but no more than, 40 hours of PML in any benefit/fiscal year.   

If use of PML is foreseeable the employee should provide notice to his/her supervisor 7 days, but no less than 1 day prior to his/her absence. 

When not foreseeable, an employee requesting to use PML must contact his/her immediate supervisor, or if his/her immediate supervisor is unavailable the HR department before the beginning of his/her shift-start time.  The employee must, when calling in, provide an explanation (without disclosing privileged or confidential information; See, PMLA poster) for his/her absence.   

KPL may require that the employee provide documentation to verify the employee’s need for time off, and the legitimacy of the employee’s request.  If required, the employee will be provided at least 3 days to provide/produce the required documentation. 

Employees who fail to properly/timely call-in, or who fail to timely provide required documentation, will be subject to corrective/progressive disciplinary action.  

PML will be paid at the employee’s base hourly pay rate as of the time the PML is taken (no special forms of compensation such as incentives, bonuses, shift premiums, etc., will be factored into PML pay). 

Coordination: 

Any time an employee is absent from scheduled work will – when appropriate – be taken/subtracted from the team member’s PML bank and/or vacation or other paid time off bank.  The only exceptions might be when the employee is on an approved leave (e.g. FMLA, medical leave, etc.) and receiving another form of compensation (e.g. workers compensation, STD or LTD, etc.).   

Employees should use their PML judiciously/sparingly.  If an employee exhausts his/her PML and/or other paid time off banks, and unless the employee has requested and been approved for another form of “leave” (e.g. FMLA, medical leave, military leave, jury duty leave, etc.), the employee will be considered AWOL and will be subject to progressive/corrective disciplinary action. 

Accrued and unused PML: 

Eligible employees will not be paid at the end of a benefit/fiscal year for any accrued and unused PML, nor will the employee be paid for any accrued and unused PML upon separation from employment. 

Effective March 29, 2019