Certified Leave Management Specialist (CLMS) Certification Practice Test

If an employee took 10 weeks of FMLA for caregiver leave, what is the total length of leave they can take for a qualified family member's illness if they have not used other leave?

1. 26 weeks

2. 20 weeks

3. 14 weeks

4. Unrestricted leave based on FMLA

The correct answer is: 26 weeks

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for certain family and medical reasons, including caregiver leave for a qualified family member's illness. However, if an employee takes leave for their own serious health condition, time taken for caregiving can affect their total leave entitlement. In this scenario, if the employee has already taken 10 weeks of FMLA leave for caregiver purposes, they still have the potential to take additional FMLA leave for their own serious health condition or to care for a family member, but that total would be capped at the overall maximum allowed under FMLA within the designated 12-month period. Specifically, under the “FMLA combined limit” rule, employees can use a total of 26 weeks of leave in a single 12-month period for certain service members’ families, or 12 weeks for other qualified family members, but since the employee is already utilizing 10 weeks for caregiving, they are left with an additional 2 weeks to reach the comparative maximum 12 weeks allowed for a serious health condition or caregiving duties. It's important to note that the 26 weeks referenced in the correct