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What’s the law on granting time off for workers who want to attend kids’ school activities?

04/20/2011
Q. Several of our employees have requested time off for their children’s end-of-year school events. What is our obligation to grant workers this time off?

Accruing sick leave while on FMLA

04/15/2011
Q. If an employee is on FMLA paid sick leave, can we stop her from accruing sick leave while out?

Remind employees: They must continue to pay health insurance premiums while on FMLA

04/15/2011
Employees out on unpaid FMLA leave are still entitled to health insurance benefits if they were covered before going out on leave. However, if the employee was required to pay part of the premium before taking leave, that obligation continues.

Does the FMLA grant leave for foreign adoptions?

04/14/2011
Q. One of our employees is adopting a 5-year-old Ethiopian child and has asked for leave to travel to complete the adoption and bond with the child when they return to Minnesota. Does this count as FMLA leave, since it is not leave within the first year of the child’s life? If it does, is the travel time eligible for FMLA leave?

Grant FMLA leave for pregnancy-related conditions

04/14/2011
Many employers think expectant ­mothers can take FMLA leave only for childbirth and baby bonding. They don’t realize that any medical appointments and pregnancy-related illnesses are also eligible for FMLA leave.

Work with your attorney to preserve evidence

04/14/2011

These days, much of the evidence used in employment litigation is electronic—such as attendance records. Courts require employers to preserve such evidence when employers reasonably know that a lawsuit could arise. If evidence is destroyed, courts can impose heavy financial sanctions and even hand a win to the other side without a trial.

How not to handle FMLA leave: Do what Chicago did to a seriously ill employee

04/14/2011
Here’s a chance to learn from an employer’s FMLA mistakes. Don’t make the same ones yourself.

U.S. trails the world on paid maternity leave

04/14/2011
You can count the number of nations lacking a definitive law providing paid maternity leave on one hand—and still have two fingers left over. Guess what. One is the United States. That’s what Human Rights Watch found when it studied family leave practices worldwide.

How to ensure your employee handbook supports FMLA compliance

04/12/2011
Employers are free to develop their own policies, but many laws have an absolute mandate—you must ensure employees receive proper notice of your policies. That’s why the FMLA section of your handbook is so important. Here’s your roadmap to full compliance with the FMLA’s notification requirements.

Offer FMLA, but still enforce attendance rules

04/06/2011

Employees occasionally have to step in on short notice to help care for a family member and may legitimately need FMLA leave to handle those responsibilities. Go ahead and suggest FMLA time off. However, until the employee takes you up on the offer, you can hold her to your regular attendance policy.