What Employers Need to Know About Leave Management in 2025

Managing employee time-off requests can be a full-time job for your human resources team. While some leave entitlements are guaranteed by law, other types of employee absences are determined by the employer’s discretion or personal leave policy.

It’s important to honor employee leave requests to meet your obligations under the law and support employee well-being. But what are the most effective leave management strategies of 2025, and how can you use HR automation to streamline them?

Let’s take a look at four types of leave, including paid leave and unpaid leave, and what   features to look for in employee leave management software.

What Is a Leave of Absence?

A leave of absence is a period of time away from work, usually for medical, family, or personal reasons, that’s either paid or unpaid. A leave of absence can last anywhere from a few days or weeks to a year or more, as in the case of a sabbatical.

Some state and federal leave laws, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), provide up to 12 weeks of leave per calendar year for specific qualifying reasons. This type of leave is job-protected, which means that an employee can’t be fired for taking leave, and must be allowed to return to the same job or an equivalent position.

4 Types of Leave and Examples

Just like sick days are different from vacation days, there are different types of leave to keep track of. A leave of absence is there for employees when their other benefits (sick leave, paid vacation leave, or paid time off) won't cover them. Here are four main types of leave (along with examples) to help you distinguish between them.

Mandatory Leave

Mandatory leave is a leave of absence required under state or federal law, which may or may not be paid. Depending on an employer’s size and location, they may be required to provide leave for any the following reasons:

• Family, medical, or military caregiver leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• As a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• To vote or attend jury duty
• To take military leave under Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)

Voluntary Leave

Voluntary leave isn’t required by law, but is determined by company policies. This type of leave can be either paid or unpaid, but should be applied fairly to all employees to avoid compliance issues. It may include:

• Sick leave
• Personal leave
• Sabbatical leave
• Bereavement leave
• Parental leave (if not guaranteed under FMLA)

Paid Leave

Paid leave allows employees to fully make use of their leave entitlement without having to worry about loss of income. Some types of leave are paid for by the employer, while others are funded through a state-based insurance program. These may include:

• Paid family leave
• Paid time off (PTO)
• Short-term disability leave

Unpaid Leave

Employees who take unpaid leave aren’t entitled to pay or wage replacement, but they may still be entitled to some protections, like the right to keep their healthcare while on leave and the right to return to work after the leave period ends. Examples include:

• Sabbatical
• Personal leave
• A qualifying leave of absence under FMLA

Can Employees Qualify for More Than One Type of Leave? 

As you can see, these four types of leaves have plenty of overlap. It’s even possible for employees to be on multiple types of leave — such as paid parental leave and unpaid FMLA leave — concurrently. How is this possible? If an employer offers paid parental leave as company policy — or if state law requires it — then an employee can take paid leave while still qualifying for FMLA protections.

Similarly, if an employee qualifies for mandatory leave, they may be able to draw from their voluntary sick leave or personal leave simultaneously.

It’s important for employers to choose a leave management platform with the functionality to handle multiple types of leave and to track intermittent leave periods.

4 Trends Shaping Leave Management in 2025

Understanding the four types of leave is the first step to effective leave management — but it’s important to remember that leave laws aren’t static, and it’s up to you to keep on top of the latest leave management practices and trends. Here are four trends shaping leave management in 2025 and beyond.

1. Labor laws are getting more complex.

A lot has changed since the Family and Medical Leave Act was first introduced in 1993. While this federal law has remained more or less the same, many states have their own leave laws that overlap with FMLA — including Illinois and Oregon.

In addition, the world of work has changed, with more and more companies introducing remote work policies. This can complicate FMLA eligibility for employees, and the U.S. Department of Labor has issued guidance on how FMLA applies to remote workers.

Using a leave management platform like Pulpstream can help you stay on top of the latest developments and ensure compliance with state and federal law.

2. You can’t shortchange the approval process.

Whether or not an employee is eligible for FMLA depends on several factors, including how long they’ve worked for their employer and how many of their coworkers work at a job site within a 75-mile radius. For other types of leave, such as accrued sick time or paid time off, you’ll need to know how many hours are left in their leave balance.

Although you can’t shortchange the approval process, you can speed it up by swapping Excel spreadsheets with user-friendly time-tracking attendance software. Pulpstream’s cloud-based tools automatically track leave accrual and eligibility criteria, reducing the time it takes to review a request from 8 hours to as little as 15 minutes.

3. Documentation still matters.

Physical paperwork may be on its way out, but maintaining a paper trail still matters. If you don’t document the leave management process, you may face compliance issues with state or federal labor laws, or fail to identify cases of FMLA abuse.

This paperwork may include standard FMLA forms and templates, as well as medical certifications to verify an employee’s reason for leave.

Of course, when you use document management software like Pulpstream, you can digitize some or all of the paperwork, and make it easy for employees to upload their documents safely and securely to the cloud.

4. The employee experience is key.

Some HR departments focus on how to streamline and automate their own workflows, without considering what the process is like for employees. But employee satisfaction matters too, and focusing on leave management from their perspective can improve employee retention and reduce the risk of burnout and absenteeism.

Providing a self-service portal empowers employees to take an active role in the time-off management process, submitting their own leave of absence requests and viewing their own leave balances. Plus, Pulpstream’s platform sends email and SMS notifications in real-time so employees don’t have to chase down your HR team for updates.

Automate Leave of Absence Management With Pulpstream

There’s no getting around the fact that leave laws are complex. It can take time and effort to ensure that your business is compliant. From understanding how FMLA applies to remote employees, to knowing the difference between paid leave and unpaid leave, modern HR teams have more to keep track of than ever before.

Fortunately, they also have more tools at their disposal, and modern leave management systems can do most of the heavy lifting. Pulpstream’s cloud-based platform helps you track attendance, monitor staffing levels, manage your leave program, and more.

Get a demo today to see how Pulpstream can make a difference!