FMLA

The post-pandemic landscape may be a very different one, especially with respect to leave and accommodations, experts are saying. It’s a familiar scene for anyone who has spent time in an office: Leadership calls an all-hands meeting and droves of employees pile into the main conference room, dragging in chairs and getting cozy. But COVID-19…

As the COVID-19 crisis continues, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued more guidance for workers and employers about their rights and responsibilities under federal leave and wage and hour laws. On July 20, the DOL added new questions and answers to pandemic-related issues under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and…

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has updated certain optional Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) forms that employers and workers can use to coordinate leave requests. The department is also requesting input from the public to improve FMLA regulations and administration. The DOL said the new forms are “simpler and easier for employees, employers,…

Employees must notify employers of their need to take time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) when such leave is foreseeable, but who exactly should they tell? Their supervisor? HR? A third-party administrator (TPA)? Multiple people? The answer may depend partly on when the leave is requested (e.g., initial notice versus subsequent…

The U.S. Department of Labor/Wage and Hour Division has continued its practice of issuing opinion letters. It recently issued an opinion letter that addresses the question of whether an employee may take FMLA leave to attend a Committee on Special Education (“CSE”) meeting to discuss a child’s Individualized Education Program (“IEP”). See DOL Opinion Letter…

Parents can take Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) time off to attend special education meetings—called individualized education program (IEP) meetings—for children with serious health conditions, according to an Aug. 8 U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) opinion letter. FMLA leave likely will increase as parents learn that time off for this purpose is an option.…

A short period of time between leave taken under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and a subsequent disciplinary action does not prove the two are related, according to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The plaintiff worked as a surgical assistant for St. Luke’s Episcopal-Presbyterian Hospitals from 1995 until her termination in…

Take care of yourself! In medicine, sometimes the practices that get people in trouble are pretty simple. Too many nachos, and not enough leafy greens. You’d rather binge-watch Seasons 1-3 of Stranger Things than go for a walk. You hate needles, so you haven’t been to the doctor in 20 years. The same principle often applies…

A bakery that fired an employee who left work early to see doctors concerning his prostate cancer, for which he sought Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave, has viable claims even though his doctor did not timely certify the absences for FMLA leave, a federal district court ruled. The plaintiff worked for Lewis Brothers,…

Employers cannot permit employees to use PTO or other paid leave prior to using unpaid FMLA leave for an FMLA qualifying condition, according to a new Department of Labor Opinion Letter. The Opinion Letter also provides that employers cannot designate more than 12 weeks of leave per year as FMLA (or 26 weeks per year if…

3 Workplace COVID-19 Trends That Are Likely Here to Stay

Labor Department Issues More Coronavirus-Related Workplace Guidance

DOL Updates FMLA Forms and Seeks Input on Making Improvements

When They Need to Take FMLA Leave, Who Should Workers Tell?

DOL Issues Opinion Letter on FMLA Leave and IEP Meetings

Parents May Take FMLA Leave for Special Education Meetings

Timing Alone Is Not Enough to Prove FMLA Retaliation

Ten Ways Employers Get Themselves Sued (Part One)

FMLA May Protect Leave for Visits to the Doctor

FMLA-Qualifying Leave Must Run Concurrently With Paid Leave Policies