ESP Family Leave Act
Bill: S.2821 | Sponsor: Sen. Duckworth, Tammy (D-IL)
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
ESP Family Leave Act
This bill allows education support professionals to meet the hours of service requirements for family and medical leave if they have worked a number of hours equal to not less than 60% of the total monthly hours expected for their job descriptions and duties, as assigned for the previous school year.
Education support professionals are employees within a public school or public institution of higher education which may include specified staff, such as paraeducators, administrative support staff, custodians, skilled trade workers, and nursing support staff.
The Department of Labor may provide a method for calculating such leave for these professionals.

To establish eligibility requirements for education support 
 professionals under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``ESP Family Leave Act''.

SEC. 2. ELIGIBILITY FOR EDUCATION SUPPORT PROFESSIONALS.

    Section 101(2) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 
U.S.C. 2611(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(F) Education support professionals.--
                            ``(i) Determination.--For purposes of 
                        determining whether an employee who is an 
                        education support professional meets the hours 
                        of service requirement specified in 
                        subparagraph (A)(ii), the employee will be 
                        considered to meet the requirement if the 
                        employee has worked a number of hours equal to 
                        not less than 60 percent of the applicable 
                        total monthly hours expected for the employee's 
                        job description and duties, as assigned for the 
                        previous school year.
                            ``(ii) File.--Each employer of an education 
                        support professional shall maintain on file 
                        with the Secretary (in accordance with such 
                        regulations as the Secretary may prescribe) 
                        information specifying the total monthly hours 
                        expected for the employee's job description and 
                        duties for each school year.
                            ``(iii) Definitions.--
                                    ``(I) Education support 
                                professional.--In this subparagraph, 
                                the term `education support 
                                professional' means an employee within 
                                a public school or public institution 
                                of higher education, which may 
                                include--
                                            ``(aa) paraeducators that 
                                        provide instructional and non-
                                        instructional support;
                                            ``(bb) secretarial, 
                                        clerical, and administrative 
                                        support staff;
                                            ``(cc) custodians and 
                                        maintenance service workers 
                                        that provide building and 
                                        grounds maintenance and repair;
                                            ``(dd) skilled trade 
                                        workers that provide services 
                                        in schools, such as 
                                        electricians, carpenters, and 
                                        workers who operate machinery;
                                            ``(ee) workers who provide 
                                        food service, including 
                                        preparation and serving of 
                                        food;
                                            ``(ff) workers who provide 
                                        school transportation and 
                                        delivery services;
                                            ``(gg) computer, 
                                        audiovisual, and language 
                                        technical support staff;
                                            ``(hh) security staff;
                                            ``(ii) nursing, health, and 
                                        therapy support staff, who may 
                                        also provide community, family, 
                                        parent and welfare services; 
                                        and
                                            ``(jj) other staff that may 
                                        serve public education 
                                        students.
                                    ``(II) Public school.--In this 
                                subparagraph, the term `public school' 
                                means a school that is maintained at 
                                public expense for the education of the 
                                children of a community or district and 
                                that constitutes a part of a system of 
                                free public education commonly 
                                including primary and secondary 
                                schools, including special education 
                                cooperatives, alternative schools, and 
                                other similar facilities.
                                    ``(III) Public institution of 
                                higher education.--In this subparagraph 
                                the term `public institution of higher 
                                education' means an institution of 
                                higher education, as defined in section 
                                101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
                                (20 U.S.C. 1001), that is funded, at 
                                least partly, by State taxpayers.''.

SEC. 3. ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE.

    Section 102(a) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 
U.S.C. 2612(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Calculation of leave for education support 
        professionals.--The Secretary may provide a method for 
        calculating the leave described in paragraph (1) with respect 
        to employees described in section 101(2)(F).''.
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