ST. LOUIS — Mayor Cara Spencer said Thursday she is making changes to the city's family and medical leave program after complaints the benefit was being abused, hurting operations and driving up costs.

City department directors for months have said the policy, which offers workers six weeks of paid leave to care for family members or recover from illness, is straining budgets and staffing. Preliminary data from the city indicates 632 workers citywide used the benefit last year, or more than a tenth of the workforce. Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson told aldermen this spring the policy had "destroyed our overtime."

Now, the Spencer administration is putting some restrictions on the program: Before workers can use the paid leave, they must use up paid vacation, sick and compensatory time. There

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