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FMLA

Post-childbirth FMLA leave: Taken in two parts?

07/17/2008

Q. One of our employees recently immigrated to the United States. She is pregnant and told us she plans to take eight weeks’ FMLA leave immediately after the child is born. A few months later, she’d like to return to her home country to visit family for a month. In other words, she wants to split her FMLA leave into an eight-week period and a four-week period. Can FMLA leave for a new child be split up in this fashion?

Is intermittent leave for childbirth OK? Only if you agree

07/11/2008
Here’s an uncommon FMLA question: Can a new father or mother return to work part time, taking intermittent FMLA leave? The surprising answer is no—unless the employer OKs it …

You can terminate employees on FMLA leave

07/11/2008
Employees who are in trouble often ask for FMLA leave. They seem to believe that asking for or taking FMLA leave protects them from disciplinary action. That’s a myth. The fact is, being on FMLA leave doesn’t protect employees from legitimate disciplinary action unrelated to their time off …

Before canceling health insurance, beware FMLA trap that could cost big bucks

07/09/2008
If, like many employers, you provide health insurance benefits to full-time employees but not part-time ones, you may be tempted to cancel coverage as soon as an employee falls to part-time status. But what if the employee is eligible for FMLA leave? Canceling may not be an option—and can lead to a big jury award …

Be careful with doctor certifications: Union contract may trump FMLA rules

07/07/2008
Employers can insist that employees submit medical certification of their need for FMLA leave within 15 days. But what happens if a union member is denied FMLA leave because the employer didn’t get the certification within the 15-day limit? …

The FMLA and domestic partners

07/07/2008
Q. Several of our company’s employees live with domestic partners. Are these employees entitled to leave under the FMLA? …

Balance FMLA and ADA rights to avoid potential trouble

07/07/2008
What happens if an employee who qualifies for FMLA leave also has a qualified disability under the ADA, a disability that could be accommodated with additional time off or a job modification? Before you discharge someone unable to return to her old job after 12 weeks of FMLA leave, consider whether she is disabled and can be accommodated—if she asks …

Make sure employees understand your FMLA calendar

07/07/2008
FMLA regulations provide employers with four options for calculating how much leave employees are entitled to at any given time. But if you don’t select a method and let employees know, the DOL says you must use the one most beneficial to the employee. That may mean doing four calculations every time an employee wants FMLA leave …

Worried about leave abuse? You can require regular call-Off

07/07/2008
Employees who have chronic medical conditions that require intermittent FMLA leave sometimes take advantage of alleged flare-ups to go on vacation or otherwise miss work for personal reasons. Discourage that kind of abuse by requiring them to call in daily. If the employee ignores the requirement, you can terminate her for failing to follow company policy …

Returning worker, FMLA leave and consecutive employment

07/07/2008
We have an employee who has worked for us for more than 12 months, but not 12 consecutive months (he left, and then we rehired him). Now this employee is requesting FMLA leave. Must the months of employment required to be eligible for FMLA leave be consecutive? …