Welcome to Cocoon!
Whatever the reason you're pursuing a leave of absence, the Cocoon team will be here to support you through the planning, paperwork, and logistics of taking leave.
We know that going out on leave can be deeply emotional and an incredibly difficult process to navigate. Our goal is to simplify that process wherever we can, so you know what to expect and what's needed every step of the way throughout your leave journey.
How do I get started?
In your Cocoon dashboard, you can kick off the process by drafting your leave plan in private.
As you draft your plan, you'll be able to view what entitlements are available to you providing job protection, how you'll be paid, and which leave forms may be necessary to complete.
To view the pay sources throughout your leave, click in to the $ icon:
To view your entitlements or employer commitments providing time off, click in to the clock icon:
As you plan your leave (and throughout its duration), we’ll coordinate your leave eligibility and entitlements and ensure compliance with federal, state, local, and employer policies. We'll also help guide the claims process and facilitate your employer pay to ensure you’re receiving all funds available to you throughout your leave.
Do I need to tell my company I’m taking leave or does Cocoon do that?
Through Cocoon, you’ll be able to plan your leave in private and on your own timeline. Your employer won't be informed of your leave plan until you've completed the submission flow in your dashboard.
Once your leave plan is submitted, Cocoon will automatically inform your HR team, as well as your direct manager about your intended leave dates. If you make any changes to your leave plan after submission, your HR team and manager will be kept up to date to ensure everyone is kept in the loop.
Please note: this also means your leave plan is not active or confirmed until it has been submitted to your employer.
Why do I need to submit my plan and sign consents?
In order to ensure we’re able to most effectively facilitate your leave, claims, & pay, we’ll need your authorization and consent.
Once we have that, we’re able to help guide any claim filings, manage your entitlements, and coordinate your pay between your employer and any state or insurance benefits that are available to you to ensure you’re receiving all funds entitled to you.
How does Cocoon protect my data?
Cocoon takes securing our users' data very seriously. Cocoon protects PII data securely by ensuring all user data is encrypted both at rest and in transit using latest standards. Cocoon is also SOC2 Type II certified, which is a leading audit on how a cloud-based service provider handles sensitive information. Internally, access to user data is highly audited and locked down and Cocoon runs periodic penetration tests by third party security consultants to ensure its product and infrastructure is secure.
During my leave, what kind of outreach should I expect from Cocoon?
Our team at Cocoon will do our best to handle all of your leave logistics, but occasionally we’ll need your help to unblock claims and payments. You can expect the following outreach from us:
Confirming leave dates – Cocoon will reach out at the start and end of your leave to confirm that your dates are accurate. We need this verification since inaccurate dates could delay the filing of your claims or disrupt your pay.
Reaching out to your medical provider – If you have a disability component to your leave (e.g. you are a birthing parent or going on medical leave), Cocoon will provide you the leave forms that require your medical provider's certification, as well as the instructions for them to complete these forms accurately and completely. It will be your responsibility to ensure these leave forms are submitted to Cocoon in a timely fashion.
For more information on the leave forms required for medical leave, see this article.
For more information on the leave forms required for caregiver leave, see this article.
Submitting child information – If you are on parental leave, Cocoon will reach out on your child’s expected due date to request confirmation information regarding your child's arrival.
Verifying your benefit payments – As you begin to receive payments from state programs and your private disability provider, we’ll ask you to verify your benefit payments within the pay section of your Cocoon dashboard.
This allows our team to ensure your employer pay is being coordinated accurately.
Additionally, once your claims are finalized, we may ask you to reach out to your private disability provider or state program to respond to one-off requests. We try to avoid this as much as possible, but oftentimes state programs and private insurance will refuse to progress your claims unless they're able to coordinate with the recipient of benefits directly. In these situations, Cocoon will provide guidance and support to best action next steps wherever we can.
If you receive a notice or request from a claim entity and would like guidance, please let us know at [email protected] or upload the documentation to your Cocoon dashboard, so we're able to help.
We know outreach while you're out on leave can be stressful, so please never hesitate to reach out to our Support team and they're happy to help wherever and whenever we can.
What should I go to HR or my People team for?
While we’re happy to answer any and all questions that might come up around your leave, there are some topics that can come up that we're not best positioned to help with.
Information on non-leave benefits
For information on other benefits - such as health insurance, vesting, or 401(k)s - your HR/People team will be your best resource!
Accommodation requests
If your medical provider recommends accommodations upon your return to work, you'll want to coordinate directly with your People team.
Paid time off (PTO) and sick days
If you'd like to supplement your leave with PTO days or sick days - or if your employer offers a ramp-back or part-time return program - your People team are best set up to help discuss your options here.
Can I adjust my leave dates after submission?
Yes! You should submit your leave as soon as you're ready to announce your leave plans. The sooner you can let your team know, the more time they will have to adequately prepare for your leave.
We know that leave dates are incredibly subject to change, so you’re absolutely able to adjust your expected dates even after you’ve submitted your leave plan. Once submitted, any changes made to your leave dates will automatically trigger an update to be sent to your team to inform them of the intended change.
Medical portions of leave
Medical leaves must be taken under the care of a medical provider, which means that your leave dates in Cocoon should reflect the dates that your medical provider has certified on your short-term disability claims.
If your medical provider recommends you alter or extend your leave dates, please update your plan and let us know as soon as possible!
Parental leave
For non-medically certified sections of parental leave - most commonly known as bonding leave - you're able to make adjustments to your leave for any time that hasn't already been taken, as long as you give reasonable notice to your employer that your leave dates have changed.
Depending on whether your state provides pay-replacement benefits for family leave, we may need to amend your state claims or help facilitate repayment of benefits.
What do I do if I need to adjust my leave dates?
If you need to change your dates after your claims have already been filed, please update your dates in your Dashboard as soon as possible. There you'll see guidance on all steps necessary to successfully adjust your leave dates with any applicable claim entities.
Have Questions? We're here to help!
Email us at [email protected]