If you're a parent and work for a company that has 21 or more employees, you are eligible to take a variety of leaves under the federal Family and Medical leave law and the Minnesota Parental Leave law.

We'll refer to each law separately. The federal Family and Medical Leave Law applies to employers who have 50 or more people working for them. It allows you to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for the following purposes:

• the birth or adoption of a child - this applies to the mothers and fathers.
• to care for a seriously ill spouse, child or parent.
• or in the event that you are seriously ill and need to be out of work

Under the federal Family and Medical Leave law, your employer must guarantee that you can return to your former position or a position that is the same as far as pay, benefits and other terms and conditions. While you are on leave, your employer is also required to provide all your benefits, including health care, at the same level and under the same conditions as if you were not on leave.

Now, lets talk about the Minnesota Parental Leave law. This law covers you if you work for an employer with 21 or more employees. Here is what the law says: Parents - and this means both mothers and fathers - can take up to six weeks off from work when they give birth to or adopt a child. This is time off without pay. After six weeks you are guaranteed your original job or a comparable job at the same company. Each employer will handle benefits differently, so you may need to plan for health insurance or other costs during this time.

Also, if you work for a company with 21 or more employees that has sick leave benefits, the law says that parents can use their own sick leave to stay home to care for sick children. You can't use sick leave for other dependents such as an aging parent or other family member under this law. If this is your situation, check with your employer to see what their policy is.

The law also says that any employee for any company can take up to 16 hours a year without pay to attend school activities such as parent-teacher conferences, field trips, open houses, or to volunteer. This applies to parents with children in child care or preschool as well as kindergarten through 12th grade.

Even though these laws don't require your employer to pay your salary some companies may choose to provide some paid options. Check with your human resources department to see what their policy is.

If you feel that your employer isn't following the Minnesota law, call the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry at 651-284-5005 or 1-800-342-5354. For questions about the federal law, call the US Department of Labor at (612) 370-3371 or visit DOL