There are abbreviations and definitions that apply to the laws and programs that provide job protection or income replacement for leaves of absence. Shown below are a set of common LOA-related abbreviations and definitions.

CHP Form:  Certification of Healthcare Provider Form must be completed by you and your doctor and submitted for your own medical leave or pregnancy and childbirth leave to certify your medical or pregnancy disability. This form should also be completed by your family member’s doctor if you are taking a care of a family member leave.

Exigency:  an urgent need. In the FMLA, it generally refers to a military family’s need to support or care for a service member.

FMLA: Family and Medical Leave Act is a law that provides associates up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave. This leave runs concurrent with medical leave and pregnancy and childbirth leave. For pregnancy and childbirth leave, it generally covers both the disability period and a partial period for baby bonding. To be eligible, you must have worked for Albertsons for more than 12 months and for at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months before your leave begins.

Reasons to take FMLA are:

  • Birth of a child
  • Placement of a child for adoption or foster care
  • To care for a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition
  • To care for one’s own health during a serious health condition
  • To care for a family member injured in the line of duty (military caregiver leave)
  • Because of any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the associate’s spouse, child, or parent is a military member on covered active duty

FSA: Flexible Spending Account. You can enroll in or change your contributions to a Healthcare FSA within 60 days of birth or placement of a child. You can enroll in or change your contributions to a Dependent Day Care FSA when you have a significant change in eligible dependent-care expenses—like when you return to work after an LOA.

HPS Form: Healthcare Provider Status Form which must be completed by you and your doctor immediately prior to your return to work. The completed form should indicate if you are able to return to work with no restrictions or if any specific restrictions are required. This form only applies to your own medical leave.

HSA: Health Savings Account. You can enroll in an HSA if you are enrolled in the HSA Plan (or Kaiser High Deductible HSA Plan if you live in California) within 60 days of birth or placement of a child. You can change your contributions to an HSA at any time. If you change from individual to family medical coverage, the amount you can contribute will increase from $4,150 to $8,300 annually from that point forward.

LOA: Leave of absence, the overall term that applies to extended time away from work.

LTD: Long-Term Disability. If you are unable to work after your short-term disability coverage ends, you may be eligible for long-term disability which pays 60% of your base pay plus bonus up to a maximum of $25,000 per month. The duration of your LTD benefits depends on the nature of your disability and your age when benefits begin.

PFL: Paid Family Leave is an income source for associates who miss time at work primarily due to issues that arise with their family members, such as a family member’s illness. PFL may run concurrently with FMLA if the leave reasons are covered by both and the associate is eligible for both. Whereas FMLA is unpaid job protection, PFL provides a qualifying associate income.

PML: Paid Medical Leave is short-term disability coverage required by a state. Short-term disability coverage is reduced by the amount an associate receives or is entitled to receive from a state-required PML program.

STD: Short-Term Disability. After a 7 calendar-day waiting period, short-term disability insurance pays 100% of your pay for 6 weeks and 60% of your pay for up to an additional 19 weeks or the date you are no longer disabled (whichever comes first). Some provisions may vary depending on your STD coverage.

For hospital confinements of 24 hours or more, including pregnancy and childbirth, or for an Outpatient Surgical Procedure which necessitates a Total Disability period or a Disabled and Working Disability period of 24 hours or more after surgery, benefits commence: 1) on the first day of hospital confinement; or 2) on the date of the Outpatient Surgical Procedure.

USERRA: Uniformed Service Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 requires employers to provide a leave of absence to allow associates to perform military obligations.

WC: Workers’ Compensation provides financial benefits for associates who have been injured on the job. FMLA runs concurrently with Workers Compensation if the associate is eligible and has time available under the FMLA.