The Maryland Parental Leave Act

 The Maryland Parental Leave Act requires requires employers with 15 to 49 employees to provide employees with unpaid parental leave.

An eligible employee may take up to a total of six weeks of parental leave in a 12-month period for the birth, adoption, or foster placement of a child.

During parental leave, the employer must maintain existing coverage for a group health plan

To be eligible for parental leave, an employee must have worked for the employer for at least one year and for 1,250 hours in the previous 12 months.  An eligible employee is generally required to provide the employer with 30-day prior notice of parental leave.

If the employer provides paid leave to employees, the employer may require that the employee substitute the paid leave for any part of or all of the period of parental leave.

The Act provides a private cause of action for damages caused by an employer’s noncompliance. If a court determines that an employee is entitled to judgment in an action, the court must award reasonable attorney’s fees and other costs of the action to the employee.