Minnesota Paid Leave

Yes, MN Paid Leave offers job protections after 90 calendar days from the date of hire. This means that if you qualify, you must be allowed to return to your original job (or an equivalent one with the same pay, benefits, and working conditions) when your leave is over. You do not lose seniority.

No. Since this is a state-mandated leave program, if you work in Minnesota and meet the eligibility criteria outlined above, you are required to be automatically enrolled. You cannot opt out of the shared premiums (described below).

However, it is your choice whether to apply for and take MN Paid Leave if you experience a qualifying event.

Paid sick time, ESST (when allowable), and vacation time can be used as a supplement to “top off” the benefit payments from MN Paid Leave to reach 100% of your biweekly wage. Sick time, ESST, and vacation can be used in 0.25 hour (15 minute) increments to supplement MN Paid Leave.

Parental Leave runs concurrently with MN Paid Leave and you would then receive MN Paid Leave and Parental Leave payments to total 100% of your biweekly wage.

You can receive both MN Paid Leave and the University’s voluntary short-term disability benefits at the same time, and your payments will not be reduced—even if the combined total exceeds 100% of your regular pay.

Paid Medical Leave and Disability Benefits for Faculty and Academic Professional and Administration Employees (sometimes known as Paid Medical or Academic Disability, depending on the reason for leave) runs concurrently with MN Paid Leave.

You would then receive MN Paid Leave and either Paid Medical or Academic Disability to total 100% of your biweekly wage.

It depends on where your work is performed. You are covered by MN Paid Leave if you work at least 50% of your time from a location in Minnesota. This includes employees who work from home in Minnesota or spend some time working in other states. However, you are not covered by MN Paid Leave if you work more than 50% of your time in a different state.

If you live in Minnesota but don’t work at least 50% of your time in any one state—for example, if you split your time evenly between Minnesota and two other states—you are still covered.

If you're still unsure about whether you qualify or have other questions about MN Paid Leave, please reach out to our Leave Administration team at [email protected]. 

Under MN Paid Leave, a family member can include:

• Spouse or partner
• Child (including biological, adopted, step, or foster children, or a child you raise, even if you are not legally related)
• Parent or person who raised you
• Sibling
• Grandchild or grandparent
• In-laws (including child or parent)
• Anyone close to you who depends on you without the expectation of compensation for caring for them, even if not related by blood

In your application, you will provide information on your relationship to the person you will care for while on leave.

Yes, 9-month employees are eligible for MN Paid Leave, including during the summer.

Yes, part-time employees are eligible for MN Paid Leave as long as they meet the eligibility requirements outlined above.

You can take leave in a single block of time (continuous leave) or in smaller blocks of time (intermittent leave). This flexibility is built into MN Paid Leave to fit different needs. For example:

• If you have surgery and need to be completely out of work for six weeks, that is a continuous leave.
• If you have a chronic condition or a family member who needs transportation to recurring treatments, you might only need to take a day or a few hours off each week. That is intermittent leave.

You can take at least 480 hours of intermittent leave in a year. If you need and qualify for additional leave in a benefit year, up to the maximum of 20 weeks, you may be able to take remaining leave as intermittent or be required to take it as continuous leave, depending on the qualifying event.

You should discuss what leave schedule you might need with your healthcare or service provider certifying your leave.

Yes, you can take leave for more than one qualifying reason in the same year. For example, you could take eight weeks of Medical Leave to recover from surgery, and then later take 12 weeks of Family Leave to welcome a child.

Remember, you cannot exceed 12 weeks for either Medical or Family Leave, or more than 20 weeks combined in a benefit year.

Yes, you can take pregnancy-related Medical Leave or bonding Family Leave in 2026, as long as the leave is completed within 12 months of the child's birth, adoption, or foster placement. This means that parents who welcome a child in 2025 may each take up to 12 weeks of bonding Family Leave in 2026, and birthing parents may take up to 12 weeks of pregnancy-related Medical Leave.

Remember, you cannot exceed 12 weeks for either Medical or Family Leave, or more than 20 weeks combined in a benefit year.

For example:

• Parents who welcomed a child on June 1, 2025, would have between January 1, 2026, and June 1, 2026, to take up to 12 weeks of bonding Family Leave each.
• Parents who welcomed a child on March 1, 2025, would need to take their leave between January 1, 2026, and March 1, 2026. This means they could take up to 8 weeks of bonding Family Leave each.

Yes, MN Paid Leave does not require the family member you are caring for to live with you, near you, or within Minnesota. Certification will come from the family member's healthcare or service provider and specify that you are taking leave to care for them.

All leaves under the program require certification, which means that a healthcare or service provider must provide documentation to confirm that the leave is necessary.

• Medical Leave: a healthcare provider must certify that your serious health condition prevents you from performing your regular job and the amount of time needed.
• Family Leave:
  • Caring Leave: to care for a family member, your family member's healthcare provider must complete a certification form that demonstrates the medical necessity of your care and the amount of time required.
  • Bonding Leave: to welcome a child into your home, you will need documentation completed by a healthcare professional, adoption agency, or foster care agency that demonstrates the child has arrived or been placed in your home.
  • Military Family Leave: you will need a copy of the active-duty orders or other official military document that shows your family member is about to be deployed for duty.
  • Safety Leave: you will need documentation that includes proof of the need for leave. This could include a letter from a qualified professional (such as a domestic violence advocate, counselor, or attorney), a police report, or a restraining order or other court order. This document does not require detailed information about what happened, only that safety leave is required.

Yes, you can take leave from one or more employers at the same time.

Your biweekly benefit payment from the University will only be calculated based on the total wages you earn from the University.

If you are working for another employer in addition to working at the University (including dual employees with University of Minnesota Physicians), you will also have to follow their process for applying for MN Paid Leave to receive payments for wages earned at that workplace.

No, there is no waiting period for MN Paid Leave payments. MN Paid Leave is designed to pay you from the start of your leave. Once your leave is approved, you will be paid biweekly following the regular University payroll schedule.

You cannot receive Paid Leave payments while also receiving the following benefits:

• Unemployment Insurance payments
• Social Security disability benefits (in most circumstances)

If you take intermittent leave, you will receive MN Paid Leave payments for the time you actually take off from work.

Unlike continuous leave, which is a fixed schedule, you will need to regularly report the hours or days you were on leave. MetLife will use that information to calculate your payment.

As a state-mandated program for Minnesotans, MN Paid Leave is funded through premiums shared equally between the University and employees who work at least 50% of their time in Minnesota. Payroll deductions for these employees are a small percentage of your earnings.

For a typical employee, this comes to approximately:

• $187.50 annually for someone earning $50,000
• $375.00 annually for someone earning $100,000

You can estimate how much you will be taxed for MN Paid Leave with the Premium Calculator on the State of Minnesota’s website.

Premium deductions began on January 1, 2026, when MN Paid Leave benefits became available. The first paycheck that displayed a line item for premium deductions was January 7, 2026.

MN Paid Leave premiums are shown as a tax on your pay statement. It is two separate line items, one for each portion of the leave program (MN Paid Family Leave and MN Paid Medical Leave).

For University employees, the line items show up as MN VPFL/EE and MN VPML/EE.

For dual employees with University of Minnesota Physicians (UMP), the line items show up as MN PFL/EE and MN PML/EE.

The State of Minnesota allows employers to offer an equivalent plan to MN Paid Leave, as long as it provides the same or better coverage and is formally approved by the State.

The University of Minnesota plan is administered by MetLife, who also currently administers the University’s disability benefits. This plan has been reviewed and approved by the State of Minnesota, ensuring it meets all required standards.

Please reach out to our Leave Administration team at [email protected] with any questions.