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FMLA

Heed DOL opinion letter to coordinate federal FMLA with state and local requirements

02/20/2025
The letter acknowledges that under the FMLA, employees can elect to use accrued vacation, sick and workers’ comp leave for unpaid FMLA leave, and employers can require it. This substitution runs concurrent with FMLA leave until the entitlement is used up.

Your own assets are at risk! You could be liable for FMLA mistakes

02/18/2025
A federal court has decided that employees like HR professionals and supervisors can sometimes be held personally liable for FMLA violations. That means their assets can be seized to pay damages.

Can’t accommodate with time off? Hire a replacement

02/12/2025
The ADA requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations, including time off, for a disabled worker unless the accommodation creates an undue hardship. But how much time off is a hardship?

Experimental treatments are covered under the FMLA

01/23/2025
The Department of Labor has concluded in a letter to a medical organization that FMLA-covered leave taken by an employee with a serious health condition includes leave to participate in an experimental medical treatment.

Employee providing care for seriously ill sibling? Consider agreeing to request for FMLA leave

01/21/2025
The FMLA provides job-protected leave so employees can care for a long list of close relatives, including spouses, children and parents. The law even allows leave to care for grandchildren and grandparents if there is an in loco parentis relationship between them. But what about siblings?

PWFA excludes time to bond

01/15/2025
The PWFA requires employers to accommodate pregnancy limitations, but does not require time off to bond.

Employer lessons from 2024’s worst employee lawsuits

01/03/2025
It’s a new HR year and we’re here with some important lessons from the top four employment lawsuits of 2024. Don’t repeat these employer mistakes.

Can workers demand remote work as a form of FMLA leave?

11/18/2024
Employees who are eligible for FMLA leave sometimes don’t want to take it because it’s unpaid. However, some have begun asking to take intermittent FMLA leave on a work-from-home basis, so they can care for a sick child or other close relative and still collect a paycheck. Must employers grant such a request? It’s tricky.

PWFA: Routinely grant requests for leave to attend pregnancy-related appointments

10/16/2024
EEOC rules implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act say employers should routinely grant pregnant employees’ requests for time off to attend pregnancy-related medical appointments. It’s so clear-cut that one employer just quickly agreed to settle when the EEOC threatened to file a failure-to-accommodate lawsuit under the PWFA.

Suspect FMLA abuse? Document suspicion

10/10/2024
If you think an employee has abused FMLA leave, documentation is crucial. For example, if medical certifications doubt whether the time taken is legitimate, save that documentation before you take disciplinary action.