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Doctor’s note should trigger FMLA certification request

09/26/2008

The FMLA gives employers the right to ask for proper medical documentation showing that an employee actually needs and is entitled to medical leave. The law also makes it clear that employers don’t have to accept vague notes or leave requests. But that doesn’t mean you can ignore a doctor’s note that is unclear or ambiguous about the employee’s condition …

The prodigal employee: Should you let staff ‘unresign’?

09/25/2008

Q. An employee who resigned last week called and said it was a mistake to leave. He wants to come back. He left on good terms. Should we let him return? If so, how do we handle seniority, accrued vacation, etc.?

What should we do if we suspect an employee is abusing workers’ comp?

09/24/2008

Q. How far can we go to make sure employees aren’t taking advantage of our company while they’re out on workers’ comp leave? Can we, for example, call them at home to make sure they are resting and not out working another job or otherwise abusing the system? …

Bill requiring mandatory sick leave stalls in committee

09/19/2008

The California Senate Appropriations Committee recently held up a bill that would have required all employers in the state to give workers paid sick leave. Under the bill, known as the “California Healthy Families, Healthy Workplaces Act,” employees who work in the state for seven or more days in a calendar year would be entitled to paid sick days …

Isn’t there a California state program that covers paid family leave?

09/19/2008

Q. I understand that the state of California has a program that offers benefits to employees who require a leave of absence to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent or domestic partner. How does this program work? …

Must we pay employee who takes family and medical leave to care for relative?

09/19/2008

Q. One of our employees will be taking a protected leave of absence to care for her ill mother. Are we required to pay her for the time off? …

Unmarried co-workers, childbirth and FMLA leave

09/18/2008

Q. Two of our employees (they aren’t married) are having a child together. I know that spouses who work for the same company have to share the 12 weeks of FMLA leave following the birth of a child. Is that also true for unmarried parents in the same workplace?

Must employers pay doctors to fill out FMLA forms?

09/18/2008

FMLA certification forms are pretty simple—until complications arise. What kind of complications? How about an invoice from an employee’s doctor demanding that you pay the bill for filling out the form? Do employers have to pay? It depends.

What’s Working: 6 Hot Compensation & Benefits Best Practices

09/16/2008

On-site scuba lessons, desks on wheels, employee shopping sprees and unlimited time off are just a few of the ways innovative employers recruit, reward, retain and refresh workers. See if any of these best practices—some simple, some extravagant—inspire you to take a fresh look at your company’s perks.

What are the limitations on an injured employee’s right to select his own doctor?

09/12/2008
Q. While at work, one of our employees suffered what we believed to be a minor back injury. We sent him to a clinic, which determined that he could perform light-duty work. We offered him a light-duty assignment. Now the employee has gone to his personal physician, who has excused him from all work. The employee’s physician also has billed us for his services, since this was a work-related injury. We do not know how to respond to these differing opinions or whether we are obligated to pay for the employee’s personal physician’s services …