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Pregnancy: Run disability leave concurrent with FMLA?

10/01/2007

Q. We provide short-term disability leave to new mothers. Is there any reason we can’t run that leave concurrent with FMLA leave? —S.B., Washington …

Can you force a worker to get FMLA certification?

10/01/2007

Q. We want to run paid time off concurrent with FMLA leave so employees don’t receive more than 12 weeks off (paid and unpaid combined). What if an employee says she’s taking vacation time, but we know it’s for medical tests? Can we force her to get a medical certification so we can subtract the paid vacation time? —L.L., Georgia …

Callous treatment may cost you punitive damages

10/01/2007

Under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, employers that don’t reasonably accommodate disabilities may be liable for both actual and punitive damages. And those punitive damages can add up, frequently exceeding the amount of actual damages. Train all managers and supervisors on the consequences of being perceived as intentionally ignoring the law …

Do holidays count when calculating FMLA or CFRA leave?

10/01/2007

Q. When determining the amount of leave an employee has used, do holidays count against the 12-week entitlement under the FMLA or the California Family Rights Act (CFRA)? …

Employees have no unilateral right to pick shifts under FMLA

10/01/2007

You no doubt know how hard it is to juggle shifts and schedules to accommodate employees who need FMLA time off. You rely on those employees to tell you as far in advance as possible that they need time off, and then rearrange schedules and workloads to be as accommodating as possible. You can and should be a stickler for getting as much notice as possible. Don’t worry: FMLA doesn’t permit an employee to unilaterally demand you immediately assign him or her to a different schedule …

‘Association’ with disabled no automatic assurance of leave

10/01/2007

The ADA makes it illegal to discriminate against employees because of their “association” with disabled people. But what about disciplining an employee for taking time off to care for the disabled person? According to a recent Pennsylvania case, that’s perfectly OK—as long as FMLA leave is not involved …

Attendance discipline needs care if employee qualifies for FMLA leave

10/01/2007

Q. An employee of ours has attendance problems. Before we could counsel her on the attendance problems, she was approved for intermittent FMLA to care for her elderly mother. While she has taken FMLA days for her mother, she also continues to have attendance problems unrelated to her FMLA leave. Can we proceed with counseling and possible disciplinary actions while she is under FMLA? …

USERRA: An Employer’s Guide to Military Leave Law

09/25/2007
Login Email Address Password I forgot my password To continue reading this page, become an HR Specialist Premium Plus member today! Your subscription includes: Ask the Attorney: Answers to your HR legal questions Compliance Guidance: Access to 7,000 HR news articles, updated daily, sorted by state State-by-State: Summaries of HR laws in all 50 states […]

Battle of the benefits: PTO bank may calm parent vs. nonparent tension

09/18/2007

Parents vs. nonparents. Gen Y vs. Gen X and the baby boomers. In some workplaces, there’s growing tension over benefits inequality. HR better listen if employees complain that they’re getting worse benefits than their co-workers. One solution: Paid time off banks can help calm discontent.

Pregnancy & maternity leave: A legal guide and sample policy

09/11/2007
White Paper published by HR Specialist, copyright 2007 _________________________________ When an employee announces she’s pregnant, her employer better be able to deliver more than just congratulations. You need legally sound, consistent policies and practices to ward off potential pregnancy complications of your own. It’s important to know what you must do—and what you can’t do […]