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Leave

Is it insubordination to call in sick after being turned down for leave?

01/01/2008

Q. During the busiest period of the year, a veteran employee asked for time off to attend her nephew’s graduation. After being turned down, she called in sick on graduation day. Is this considered insubordination? And how should we handle this situation? …

Tell employees when you plan to charge time off to FMLA

01/01/2008

When an employee takes leave to deal with a serious health condition, be sure to inform her that you plan to charge the time against her allotment of unpaid FMLA leave. If you fail to do so and the employee later runs out of leave and loses a benefit, it will be relatively easy for her to sue and show she was somehow harmed by the lack of notice …

What are ADA requirements for accommodating depression and psychiatric disabilities?

01/01/2008
Q. If a worker complains that he or she is depressed and needs time off, do I have a duty under the ADA to give the worker leave?

Shift swapping reasonably accommodates religious days off

12/11/2007

Employers can manage employees’ religious needs without simply exempting religious employees from weekend work. Here’s how: Simply design a system that rotates shifts so everyone gets a turn for weekend days off; then tell those seeking religious accommodations it’s up to them to arrange shift swaps …

Making spirits bright: 10 holiday perks to ease employee stress

12/04/2007

The holiday season can be an exceptionally stressful and busy time for your employees. And of course, frazzled, frantic and depressed doesn’t equal high productivity. Try these timesaving, stress-relieving perks to ease employees’ minds and their calendars—and improve retention.

Don’t force FMLA leave unless health condition is serious

12/01/2007

The FMLA allows employers to designate time off as FMLA leave even if employees want to use other time off (such as vacation and personal days) to deal with serious health issues. But be careful—if the time off turns out to be for a health condition that wasn’t serious and you later deny FMLA leave because the employee has none in the bank, she can charge you with interference with her FMLA rights …

Beware informal policy on returning after pregnancy

12/01/2007

Many employers try to simplify medical leave policies by adopting the same eligibility requirements set by the FMLA. But those same employers sometimes make exceptions for select employees, especially if they are seen as too valuable to lose to a short medical leave. Watch out if that’s your informal practice. Denying that flexibility to pregnant employees probably violates the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act …

Collective bargaining terms mean no unemployment comp for pregnant employees

12/01/2007

Employees who must stop working at a certain point in their pregnancies because a union agreement compels the leave are not entitled to unemployment compensation in Ohio. That’s true even if the pregnant employee could physically work and would have done so if it were an option …

Then again, where’s a fashion cop when you need one?

12/01/2007

Tacky dress might have been an improvement over what one suburban Columbus teacher routinely wore to pick up his morning paper: nothing. The Westerville City Schools placed the man, a singing teacher, on paid leave …

Boost employee morale at low cost with surprise days off

12/01/2007

Your organization is trying to hold the line on benefits costs, but you still want to offer competitive perks. One good way: Provide extra days off—a low-cost benefit that employees highly value. Organizations of all sizes can use the tactic …