Paid Family Medical Leave

As a Massachusetts employee or covered contract worker, you may be eligible for Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (MAPFML) benefits. PFML is a benefit that allows those that are eligible to take extended time away from work for needs such as caring for an ill family member, bonding with a new child, caring for your own illness or injury, tending to the needs of a family member who is being/has been deployed to active duty in the military, and caring for an injury or illness of a family member who has served or who is serving in the military.

Under MAPFML, if you meet the eligibility requirements, you may be entitled to:

• Up to 12 weeks of Family Leave in a benefit year to:
  • Care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Bond with a new child
  • Attend to the needs resulting from the fact that a family member is on active duty or has been notified of an impending call to active duty
• Up to 20 weeks of medical leave in a benefit year for your own serious health condition
• Up to 26 weeks of family leave in a benefit year to care for a family member who is a covered service member who has an injury or illness related to their active duty

You can use up to a total of 26 weeks of leave combined between Paid Family and Medical Leave in a single benefit year.

Your weekly benefit amount will be based on your earnings and the Massachusetts State Average Weekly Wage, which can change annually (see below).

For more details, refer to the MAPFML website: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/paid-family-and-medical-leave-pfml-overview-and-benefits

For Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave claims opened on or after November 1, 2023, employees may supplement (i.e., “top off”) benefits received from Massachusetts’ Paid Family and Medical Leave (MA-PFML) with any accrued and available PTO up to the ‘Individual Average Weekly Wage’ as determined by the MA Department of Family and Medical Leave. This feature is only available to claims opened under MA-PFML.

Individual Average Weekly Wage

The “Individual Average Weekly Wage” (IAWW) is calculated by the Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) or the insurance carrier (as applicable) from the amount an employee earned in the last four completed calendar quarters before the start of the employee’s benefit year. The IAWW is the average amount the employee earned per week in the two quarters when the employee earned the most money (or the one quarter with the most money if the employee only worked in two or fewer quarters).

If you are interested in this “top off” option, you must have available accrued PTO time to draw from. MAPFRE will also need to receive validation of the Individual Average Weekly Wage as determined by either the insurance carrier or the Department of Family and Medical Leave and validation of any benefits paid to you in order to make the appropriate calculation. “Top off” amounts will only be paid after the payment of MA-PFML benefits. Once calculated and then entered into the Payroll system, an irreversible adjustment will be made to your PTO balance and the benefit will be paid in the next payroll.

Filing Your MAPFL Request

MAPFML requests should be filed with MetLife. MAPFML requests (to care for an eligible family member) should be filed directly with the state. Click here for information on creating an account with the Department of Family and Medical Leave in order to request a family care leave.