THE REVERE ADVOCATE – THURSDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2020 Page 11 BENEFIT | FROM Page 10 ing deployment in a foreign country. Workers may take up to 12 weeks of family leave per year to manage needs which may include: • Caring for a deployed family member’s child or other family member immediately before their deployment. • Making fi nancial or legal arrangements for deployed family member. • Attending counseling. • Attending military events or ceremonies. • Spending time with a deployed family member during a rest or recuperation period. • Spending time with a family member when they return from deployment. • Making necessary arrangements following the death of a family member who had been deployed. • Beginning July 1, 2021 Massachusetts workers can apply for: • Care for a family member with a serious health condition. Workers may take up to 12 weeks of family leave per year to care for a family member with a serious health condition. For the purposes of family leave used to care for a family member, family members include spouses, domestic partners, children, parents, grandchildren, grandparents or siblings; spouses’ or domestic partners’ parents; and guardians who legally acted as a parent when the worker is a minor. Workers can take paid family leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition regardless of where the family member resides. How to Apply for Paid Family and Medical Leave at paidleave. mass.gov Timing Workers should give their employers at least 30 days notice before beginning their application for paid leave. Applications for future paid leave may be made up to 60 calendar days in advance of the anticipated start date. Unplanned leave due to an emergency can be applied for retroactively up to 90 calendar days after a worker has taken time off from the job. Workers should make every eff ort to schedule their leave for a time that will not disrupt the employer’s business. Documentation Workers will need to provide or fi ll out the following documents as part of the leave application process: • Proof of Identity. This is to double-check that worker is eligible, and make sure the benefits are sent to the correct person. • Certifi cation of a Serious Health Condition form. This may be done in conjunction with a worker’s healthcare provider. Workers applying for family leave to bond with a child, or family leave to manage family aff airs when a family member is deployed in a foreign country, do not need to fi ll out a Certifi cation of a Serious Health Condition form. • Current employer’s Federal Employment Identifi cation Number (FEIN) • A date when the worker informed the employer that he or she planned to apply for and take family or medical leave. (Workers filing for paid leave from multiple employers will need to fi ll out a separate application for each individual employer). Benefi t and Claim Information Workers may not be paid wages or salary or use paid sick or vacation time or other earned time off that covers the same period for which the worker receives PFML benefi ts. Additionally, the amount a worker receives in paid leave benefi ts and the total amount of leave he or she is eligible for may be reduced by any wage replacement or disability program the worker is enrolled in or has used in the past, either through the government or through the employer. These include: • Unemployment insurance. • Worker’s compensation. • Social security. • Temporary disability or paid family and medical leave benefi ts. Claim to Payment Estimated Timeline • Worker completes Application on DFML website (20 minutes-1 hour). • Employer responds to DFML’s Request for Information (1-10 business days). (It is in the worker’s best interest to let the employer know that he or she is completing the application because it may speed up the process.) Employers have 10 business days to respond but may respond sooner. • DFML reviews Application and makes claim determination (7-14 calendar days). Timelines are subject to the volume of claims received. • DFML issues Payment to Worker (8-10 days after application review). It takes 3-5 days for the vendor to be established in MMARs for the fi rst payment, then another 5 days for the payment to be received. Timelines may diff er based on the payment method selected by the applicant. Direct deposit is the quickest payment option. Employer participation in the claim approval process is important to ensure DFML has accurate and complete information about the application. Employers may recommend to the DFML that a claim be rejected if an employee has already used the maximum amount of leave for the year or that information from the claim is missing, incorrect or fraudulent. Employers may not recommend a claim be denied because of budgetary, timing, or other circumstantial reasons. For more information about eligibility, benefi ts, and how to apply, go to mass.gov/pfml. For multi-lingual support or if you have specific questions, call the PFML Contact Center at 1(833)344-7365. Happy New Year from Everett Bank! WE LOOK FORWARD TO ANOTHER YEAR OF BEING RIGHT BY YOU. WE’RE CLOSED ON FRIDAY, JANUARY 1ST AND WILL BE BACK OPEN ON MONDAY, JANUARY 4TH. AS ALWAYS, YOU CAN ACCESS OUR ONLINE BANKING AND ATMS ANYTIME. WWW.EVERETTBANK .COM Right by you. Member FDIC Member DIF
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