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| Do You and Your Company Follow FMLA Compliance Guidelines? |
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The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal HR compliance law that affords certain employees the opportunity to take an unpaid leave of absence from the workplace to address family and medical responsibilities. The time off can last as long as 12 weeks within a 12-month period. During that time, an employee’s job is protected and his or her health benefits must be maintained by the employer.
FMLA liability can be imposed against both the employer as an entity and against individual decision makers in their personal capacity. The burden is on the employer to establish that it both acted in good faith and had reasonable grounds for believing that its actions did not violate the FMLA.
If an employer has violated one or more provisions of the FMLA compliance rules, an employee may be entitled to:
• wages, employment benefits, or other compensation denied or lost because of the violation;
• monetary loss suffered because of the violation, such as the cost of providing care;
• interest calculated at the prevailing rate;
• liquidated damages;
• employment, reinstatement, or promotion;
• a reasonable attorney’s fee, reasonable expert witness fees, and other costs of the action, in addition to any judgment awarded by the court.
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 - FMLA Compliance Updates |
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On Monday, January 28th, President Bush signed into law legislation that would broaden the scope of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to include leave for military families. The expansion provides FMLA-eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave if a spouse, child, or parent is called into active duty or is on active duty. The law also provides 26 weeks of FMLA leave during a single 12-month period to employees who need to care for a spouse, child, or parent injured while on active duty and unable to perform his or her duties. The Department of Labor has released guidance indicating that the new caregiver provisions will be effective as of January 28, 2008, while the call to duty provision will not take effect until final regulations are issued defining “any qualifying exigency.” In the meantime, the DOL is encouraging employers to offer this kind of leave to qualifying employees.
To read more about an employer’s responsibilities as they relate to employees and military service, click here to download a white paper on the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA).
 LEARN MORE
WHITE PAPER: Are You and Your Company Protected Against FMLA Liability?
WEBCAST: Strategy to Avoid Family and Medical Leave Act Liability & Prevent Leave Abuse
DOWNLOAD: FMLA Checklist to Avoid Liability and Prevent Leave Abuse
DOWNLOAD: FMLA Forms for Employers, Employees, and Physicians
DOWNLOAD: 10 Questions that Can Reveal the Gaps in Your FMLA Policy
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The Department of Labor (DOL) issued an opinion letter stating that the Family and Medical Leave Act applies only to employees who work within the United States, the District of Columbia, or any territory or possession of the United States. “Employees who are employed outside these areas are not counted for purposes of determining employer coverage or employee eligibility,” according to section 29 CFR 825.105 of the DOL’s regulation on the FMLA. |
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The Department of Labor regulations and leading court cases establish that eligible employees can say very little about their reason for missing work and still shift the burden to the employer to comply with the detailed FMLA rules. Therefore, supervisors, managers, and FMLA administrators should understand the importance of both asking employees why they are not at work as scheduled and documenting the precise answer given. This creates at least some record that can be used later in the event absences are unexcused and FMLA litigation ensues. |
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