• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Leave

Intermittent leave no excuse for shoddy work

11/13/2009

When an employee is out on FMLA leave, employers have to be careful about balancing their need for full staffing so they can get the work done and the worker’s right to take leave. If missed work poses a problem, the best approach is to focus on specific work deficiencies that aren’t related to FMLA-protected absences.

Don’t promise leave if worker isn’t actually eligible

11/13/2009

Employers that promise leave to employees who aren’t really entitled to it may be liable under state law if the employee relies on that promise to her detriment.

Must we provide extended leave for employee to care for son wounded in the line of duty?

11/11/2009

Q. One of our employees has requested medical leave to care for her 35-year-old son who was injured in combat duty. The employee indicated that she will probably need more than 12 weeks of leave. Do we have to give her more than 12 weeks of leave?

Family ties: Discrimination trend … and trap!

11/10/2009

Discrimination against employees because of their family caregiving duties has become a hotbed for litigation against employers, and every indication is that this trend will continue. So it’s critical for employers to recognize the potential for liability and take necessary steps to avoid being the next defendant. Here’s how.

New House bill: 5 paid sick days to workers sent home for H1N1

11/10/2009

Congress is considering emergency legislation that would guarantee five paid sick days for workers directed to stay home by their employer for a contagious illness, such as the H1N1 flu virus. Although passage is far from certain, the Emergency Influenza Containment Act is a bill worth monitoring.

Don’t automatically grant FMLA leave for stress

11/09/2009

Employees often claim their jobs stress them out. And for some, it’s so bad they feel they need to take off work for a week or so to cope. That doesn’t mean, however, that they’re automatically entitled to use FMLA leave.

Offering extra leave beyond FMLA? You don’t have to extend job return rights

11/09/2009

Employees who take FMLA leave are entitled to be reinstated to their jobs if they return to work when their 12 weeks off expire. But many employers provide additional time off. But if employers grant that additional leave, they don’t have to reinstate the employee to the same or an equivalent position when she returns.

Beware RIFing worker who’s out on FMLA leave

11/09/2009

Employees returning from FMLA leave are entitled to reinstatement to their former jobs or equivalent positions. However, an employer can terminate an employee while she’s out on FMLA leave if it can show it would have done so anyway even if the employee hadn’t taken FMLA leave. But be careful …

Sears pays $6.2 million in record-setting ADA class-action settlement case

11/03/2009

Sears agreed last month to a $6.2 million settlement with the EEOC over charges that it violated the ADA. This is the largest ADA settlement in a single lawsuit in ADA history.

Families of veterans, service members get new FMLA rights

11/03/2009

You wouldn’t think a Pentagon budget bill would affect HR, but the 2010 Department of Defense appropriations law does—by expanding the military family leave amendments to the FMLA that were enacted last year. The legislation provided two new kinds of leave for employees with close relatives serving on active duty in the armed forces: