The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) provides time off for employees to care for family members or due to their own illness. To be eligible, employees must have been employed by Arkansas State University for a total of 12 months and have worked a total of 1,250 hours in the past 12 months.

The FMLA entitles eligible employees to a total of 12 work weeks of leave during any 12-month period for one of the following reasons:

• The birth of a child, and to care for the newborn child;
• The placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care
• The care of the employee's spouse, child, or parent for a serious health condition; or
• A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of the employee's job.

At the beginning of 2008, the President signed into law permission for an employee to take up to 26 workweeks of leave to care for a member of the National Guard or Reserves, who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperating from a medical procedure, therapy, other outpatient status, or is otherwise on the temporary disability retired list for a sickness or illness. The 12-month period used by Arkansas State University for determining eligibility is a rolling year forward, with the 12-month period beginning the first day of FMLA leave usage. (For example, if an employee begins leave for surgery on April 10 of 2008, the 12-month period begins on April 10, 2008 and ends on April 9, 2009.)