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FMLA

Terminating after FMLA leave expires? Be sure to apply rule consistently

05/06/2010

You can terminate employees who are unable to return to their jobs after their FMLA leave has expired. Just make sure you’re consistent. If you apply the same termination rule to all employees—regardless of race, age, sex or membership in any other protected category—you won’t have to worry about lawsuits.

Can employees moonlight while on FMLA leave?

05/06/2010
Q. One of our employees is off on FMLA leave to care for a sick child. But we know she is also working a second job. We need her back and it seems to me if she can take part-time work, she could work at least a reduced schedule for us instead. Can we cancel her leave?

Don’t bury FMLA leave taker in catch-up work

05/04/2010

In today’s economic climate, you may be tempted to forgo hiring a temp to fill in for an employee who’s out on FMLA leave. But what will you do if the employee returns to a huge pile of work left undone during her absence? Think twice before you tell her to “catch up or else.”

Worker–not just doctor–can prove incapacity

04/28/2010

The FMLA allows up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for eligible employees who work for covered employers to deal with their own serious health conditions. Typically, employees must visit a doctor to establish the existence of an underlying medical problem that makes the employee unable to perform her job for three consecutive days. But what if the medical provider merely says the employee may be off for one or two days?

The HR I.Q. Test: April ’10

04/20/2010
Test your knowledge of recent trends in employment law, comp & benefits and other HR issues with our monthly mini-quiz …

More leave after FMLA leave?

04/19/2010
Q. One of our employees recently completed 12 weeks of FMLA leave to care for an ill family member. She has now requested a 30-day leave to undergo chemical dependency treatment for alcohol abuse. Since she has already utilized all of her available FMLA leave, are we required to grant this most recent leave request?

Feel free to impose legitimate discipline, even if employee is out on FMLA leave

04/15/2010

The FMLA provides protected leave for employees who meet the law’s eligibility requirements. That protection includes the right to reinstatement to the same or an equivalent position when the employee is ready to return to work. But that right has limits. Employers are entirely within their rights to continue any disciplinary action they began before the employee went out on leave.

Can we force employees to use vacation days as part of FMLA leave?

04/15/2010
Q. In accordance with the FMLA, we provide up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave to eligible employees for a qualified reason. Leave under the FMLA is unpaid. However, may we require employees to concurrently exhaust any earned but unused vacation time that they may have accumulated?

Feel free to impose legitimate discipline on employee, even if she’s on FMLA leave

04/15/2010

Perhaps you have faced this situation: An employee is about to be disciplined, but suddenly applies for FMLA leave. She begins her leave while the discipline is pending. Do you have to wait to punish her? Not if you can clearly show that the punishment is for legitimate reasons and not related to her FMLA leave.

Beware FMLA trap in no-fault attendance policy

04/15/2010
Lots of employers have no-fault attendance policies, which allow a certain number of unexcused absences without any documentation, and then punish employees who go beyond allowable limits. No-fault policies are fine—as long as they don’t penalize workers for taking FMLA time off.