An expanding patchwork of paid sick leave laws may represent the next challenge for employers trying to keep pace with changing workplace laws.
While Congress has failed to pass federal legislation guaranteeing paid leave to private sector employees, that hasn’t slowed the trend. … Continue Reading
A recent decision offers a not-so-friendly reminder to HR professionals and supervisory employees: you can be individually liable for FMLA violations if you review, approve, and correspond with employees regarding their FMLA leave.… Continue Reading
For employers with employees in New York State, the cost of doing business in the state is going to go up due to recent legislation. New York State recently passed the following two important changes in the law which will impact all employees in the state: (a) an incremental increase in the minimum wage, and (b) paid family leave.… Continue Reading
As we begin 2016, it is a good time to look back at 2015 labor and employment law developments that employers must keep in mind during the new year. 2015 was indeed a busy year.… Continue Reading
Compliance with the Family & Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act continues to cause issues for even the most experienced workplace professionals. In recent years, both the FMLA and ADA have expanded coverage for employee medical issues. For example, employees who are approved for FMLA-covered intermittent leave must be permitted to use that leave in one-hour increments … Continue Reading
Employees seeking leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act are supposed to give 30 days’ notice if the need for leave is “foreseeable,” but what does “foreseeable” mean? Based on a recent 11th Circuit Court of Appeals decision, even elective surgery which could be planned far in advance, if “relatively urgent,” would not be foreseeable and thus not require … Continue Reading
In order to satisfy the Family and Medical Leave Act’s “overnight stay” requirement, an employee must be in the hospital “for a substantial period of time from one calendar day to the next calendar day as measured by the individual’s time of admission and time of discharge,” according to the federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The Court also noted, … Continue Reading
The Department of Labor has finally issued new FMLA forms. These forms (WH-380-E, WH-380-F, WH-381, WH-382, WH-384, WH-385, and WH-385V) may be accessed from the DOL’s website.
The prior FMLA forms expired well before the new ones were issued this past weekend. The new forms contain the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) disclosure language that directs medical providers not … Continue Reading
The Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) requires employers to provide eligible employees with up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave to care for a newborn child (among other reasons), and to offer reinstatement to the employee following her leave. The FMLA also makes it unlawful for an employer to interfere with an employee’s attempt to exercise her FMLA rights.… Continue Reading
Given the financial and administrative costs that FMLA continues to impose upon employers, HR managers are consulting with counsel to determine what tools are available to ensure that those who truly need FMLA leave are able to get it. One commonly used tool is to obtain second opinions to verify the accuracy of an initial medical certification.
The FMLA in … Continue Reading
In a recent case, Daniel Mecca v. Florida Health Services Center, Inc., Case No. 8:12-cv-02561 (M.D. Fla. February 3, 2014), a federal court in Florida held that where regular attendance is an “essential function” of a position and leave will not allow regular attendance now or in the immediate future, leave is not a “reasonable accommodation.”
After resigning his … Continue Reading
An employee sends an email to her manager requesting FMLA leave to care for her father “while he deals with issues surrounding his terminally ill brother.” The supervisor writes back, “Approved,” and the employee takes leave. Neither the FMLA nor the employer’s FMLA policy allows leave to care for a terminally ill uncle. Based on the employee’s absence, the employer … Continue Reading
In the wake of Hurricane Sandy last Fall and the recent tornadoes in Oklahoma, forecasters are predicting an aggressive 2013 hurricane season, which started on June 1st. Employers should take time before the storm hits to review and update workplace pay and leave policies:
Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”)
The most frequent issues that arise from hurricanes and other natural … Continue Reading
There is some very interesting news in the world of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)! The Family and Medical Leave Act is a federal law enacted by President Clinton that entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified reasons with continuation of group health insurance coverage under the same terms and conditions as … Continue Reading
Military family leave, enacted in 2009, provides for two forms of Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave benefits related to military service: Qualifying Exigency and Military Caregiver Leave. On February 5, 2013, on the twentieth anniversary of the FMLA, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a Final Rule expanding FMLA protections. One of the expansions provides families of eligible … Continue Reading
Telling employees that they’re eligible for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act when they’re not can be a costly mistake for an employer. That’s the message behind a recent Pennsylvania decision. In Medley v. Montgomery County, (E.D. Pa.) No 2:12-cv-01995, a nursing assistant worked fewer than the 1250 hours required to be eligible for FMLA leave. However, … Continue Reading
On January 30, 2012, Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis announced that the U.S. Department of Labor is issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking to implement new statutory amendments to the Family and Medical Leave Act that would expand military family leave provisions and incorporate a special eligibility provision for airline flight crew employees.
The National Defense Authorization Act for … Continue Reading
