How to Request a Leave of Absence From Work

At some point during your employment, you may need to request a leave of absence, for a variety of reasons: from personal or family health problems, the birth or adoption of a child, relief from excessive job stress, loss of a loved one, to the pursuit of a hobby or a desire to travel.

How to Request a Leave of Absence

Here are some tips for requesting a leave of absence, with letter examples you can use to get ideas for your own correspondence.

 1. Know your rights prior to scheduling a discussion with your employer. Research your organization's policy regarding leaves of absence and determine if your situation is addressed under the policy.

 

2 . Provide your employer with as much lead time as possible prior to the beginning of your leave. Advance notice will make it easier for your employer to fill the void left by your departure and make them more likely to accept your request. 

 

3. Start the process with your immediate supervisor. You don't want your direct supervisor to hear the news from Human Resources or upper management first. Additionally, don't mention your desire to take a leave of absence to coworkers until you clear it with your manager.

Word can spread fast in an office and for the best response, ​you should talk to your immediate supervisor first before broaching the topic with anyone else.

4. Outline your request in writing prior to meeting with your supervisor so he or she can digest your request before a discussion. You can submit your request via email prior to your in-person meeting. Be sure to include the reasons for your request, and clarify anything you are willing or able to do to ease the transition including training your replacement, writing a procedure manual, and fielding questions while you are gone. Review these tips for sending professional email messages and letters before you start your own letter.

5. Don't provide any legal imperatives with your initial request. Let your employer feel that they are in control and can enable you to take the leave out of good will.

If necessary, you can invoke any legal protection later on with the assistance of your Human Resources department, but legality should not come up in your first request.

6. Schedule a face-to-face meeting with your boss at a time when he or she is under the least stress if possible. If you ask for a leave of absence when your boss is feeling overwhelmed, he or she may give you a straight-out "no way."

On a day when things barely seem to be running with all hands on deck, a leave request won’t find a receptive audience. Be tactful and patient. Yes, it’s important to provide as much lead time as possible—but you should also be strategic about the best time to bring up your request.

7. If a partial leave will enable you to meet your goals, explore the feasibility of reducing your hours to part-time. In some cases, a partial leave is preferable for all involved. A part-time proposal may be more acceptable to your employer, and you will maintain some cash flow.

8. Along the same lines, consider whether a temporary work-from-home arrangement rather than a full leave might be appropriate for your situation. For example, if you need to care for a sick family member, telecommuting might be ideal for you. Or, perhaps you work from home for four days out of the week and come in one day for a weekly check-in or for meetings. Have a variety of alternatives in mind that you can lay out if your employer is open to considering other options.

9. Indicate an end date, if possible in your situation, so your supervisor has the comfort of knowing when you will return. Your request will likely go over much better if you can provide some idea as to when you'll return. Even if you can't provide an exact date, it's still better to give your employer a general timeframe of how long you expect to be gone.

10. Plan your finances prior to filing your request. Make sure you can pay your bills without the normal cash flow from your job. You will usually be able to withdraw a request for a leave for financial reasons, but you should avoid the embarrassment if possible.

11. Meet with a Human Resources representative to explore the implications for your benefits if you take a leave. If you are taking a leave for reasons covered by the FMLA, your employer will be obligated to continue providing health care coverage. However, you will still be responsible for the same employee contribution to the premium that you paid prior to your leave.

12. Plan your next steps prior to submitting your request. If your employer says no, will you continue with your job, or will you need to leave permanently? The next steps will vary significantly depending on your reasons for the leave, and if you're filing the request out of "want" or out of "need." Either way, you should have some idea in mind as to how you'll respond if your request is denied.

source: www.thebalancecareers.com