By: HUB's Absence Management Team

Oregon passes State Bill 999 making additions and changes to the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) in effort to better align provisions of OFLA with those of Oregon’s Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance program, Paid Leave Oregon. Paid Leave Oregon is set to go live as of September 3, 2023.

Oregon State Bill 999, updating OFLA provisions to better align with the Paid Leave Oregon Program

In June 2023, Oregon State Bill 999 was signed into law, with updates to portions of the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) to better align with provisions of the Paid Leave Oregon program.

Specifically, the bill:

  • Clarifies the meaning of “one-year period” for purposes of determining the amount of unpaid family leave that employees are entitled to take within any given one-year period;
  • Requires the Oregon Employment Department to adopt rules outlining factors for determining whether a significant personal bond exists in establishing the individual’s status as a covered family member by reason of affinity for purposes of paid family and medical leave;
  • Requires the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor and Industries to adopt rules relating to the affinity that are consistent with those adopted by the Oregon Employment Department;
  • Clarifies employer obligations with respect to job protection and continuation of benefits during and after periods of paid family and medical leave or unpaid family leave;
  • Clarifies provisions related to coordination of leave taken under provisions related to the paid family and medical leave program and provisions related to unpaid family leave; and,
  • Declares emergency, effective on passage.

Changes to the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA)

The following portions of the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) were amended to mirror the provisions within the Paid Leave Oregon program:

Expanded Family Member Definition

SB 999 amends the definition of “family member” to include a covered individual’s:

  • Spouse;
  • Child or child’s spouse/domestic partner;
  • Parent or parent’s spouse/domestic partner;
  • Sibling or stepsibling or sibling’s or stepsibling’s spouse/domestic partner;
  • Grandparent or grandparent’s spouse/domestic partner;
  • Grandchild or grandchild’s spouse/domestic partner;
  • Domestic partner; or,
  • Any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association with the covered individual is the equivalent of a family relationship.

The bill requires the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor and Industries to adopt rules necessary to determine that an individual identified as the equivalent of a family relationship qualifies as a covered family member. These rules must be consistent with those adopted by the Oregon Employment Department and operative no later than September 3, 2023.

Previously, the definition was limited to an employee’s spouse, parent (biological, adoptive, or foster), child (biological, adoptive, or foster), parent-in-law, and person with whom the employee was or is in a relationship of in loco parentis.

Job Restoration

OFLA requires employers to, upon return from leave, restore employees to the position they held prior to the leave commencing. In the event the prior position no longer exists, OFLA requires the employer to offer an available equivalent position with equivalent employment benefits, pay and other terms and conditions of employment.

In the event an equivalent position is not available at the same job site of the employee’s prior position, SB 999 amends OFLA to require the employer to offer the employee an equivalent position within 50 miles of the prior job site. (This updates the current language that indicates an employee may be offered an equivalent position at a location within 20 miles of the prior job site.)

If equivalent positions are available at multiple job sites, the employer must first offer the employee the equivalent position that is closest in proximity to the prior job site.

Interaction with FMLA and Paid Leave Oregon

The bill also clarifies that any leave taken under OFLA that also qualifies for leave under FMLA and/or Paid Leave Oregon must run concurrently where applicable.

Changes to the Paid Leave Oregon Program Provisions

The bill also adds clarifications to a number of provisions within the Oregon Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance program, Paid Leave Oregon:

Method for Determining if an Individual of Affinity to the Employee is Equivalent of a Family Member

The bill requires the Oregon Employment Department to adopt rules necessary to determine that an individual identified as the equivalent of a family relationship qualifies as a covered family member. These rules must be adopted in time to be operative no later than September 3, 2023.

Recuperation of Insurance Premiums

Employees are required to continue to pay their share of health insurance contributions in order for health benefits to be continued. If an employer is required or elects to pay any part of the costs of providing other insurance coverage (e.g., disability, life, etc.) that should have been paid by the employee, the employer may deduct the employee contributions they are owed upon the employee’s return to work.

Deductions may continue until the amount of employee contributions owed to the employer have been fully recovered. Amounts deducted may not exceed ten (10) percent of an employee’s gross pay for the period.

Next Steps

Employers will need to update their handbooks and/or policies outlining the impacted provisions.

HUB will be keeping a close eye on additional updates and information released by the Oregon Employment Department regarding OR PFMLI and will release additional bulletins related to this topic as warranted.

Disclaimer: Neither Hub International Limited nor any of its affiliated companies is a law or accounting firm, and therefore they cannot provide legal or tax advice. The information herein is provided for general information only and is not intended to constitute legal or tax advice as to an organization’s specific circumstances. You should consult an attorney, accountant, or other legal or tax professional regarding the application of the general information provided here to your organization’s specific situation in light of your organization’s particular needs.