Most employers have gotten the hang of handling FMLA requests: Make sure the employee is eligible; get paperwork from the provider; and monitor the amount of time taken. Whether all supervisors are overjoyed with every employee’s desire to take off due to a qualifying condition is another matter. But if you follow the procedures and
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Holiday Road! DOL Weighs in on Tracking FMLA Time Against Holidays
Tracking intermittent FMLA time — it’s every HR professional’s favorite thing to do. Do you come up with a total number of hours per employee or just count portions of the workweek? What do you do if an employee takes intermittent leave during a holiday week? If you have been wrestling with this issue, the…
To Pay or Not to Pay Military Leave? Ninth Circuit Leaves Jury to Decide USERRA Comparability Analysis
Do you have to pay an employee on military leave? Generally, you only have to pay for military leave if you pay employees on “comparable” leaves. So what is a comparable leave? In Clarkson v. Alaska Airlines, Inc., the Ninth Circuit recently held the comparability analysis under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment…
With Election Day Around the Corner, Employers Need to Remember You May Have to Give Employees Time Off to Vote
Next week on November 8, voters will head to the polls around the country for our midterm elections for the U.S. House, certain Senate seats, governorships, and other elected offices. And while voters are headed to the polls, employers should remember that they may have a requirement to provide time off to employees to vote.…
Eyeing Ian—Obligations to Employees Under Severe Weather Conditions
With Hurricane Ivan wreaking havoc, our thoughts go to those in the path of the ever-strengthening storm. The first priority for all affected is safety, but severe weather does also raise numerous employment law issues. Employers are again reminded that weather can affect your workplace. With hurricane season underway, we have updated this previously published …
Are Your Employees Covered by a State Paid Family and Medical Leave Program? The CRS Can Tell You If They Are
Paid leave benefits are a hot topic these days. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) has issued an updated report on states that have Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) programs and how they work.
Federal FMLA and Unpaid Leave
We all know that the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires employers with 50…
You Get Paid Leave! And You Get Paid Leave! USERRA Gets You Paid Military Leave!
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) entitles employees to paid short-term military leave in certain circumstances, following the Seventh Circuit’s similar holding in White v. United Airlines, Inc. In Travers v. Federal Express Corporation, Gerard Travers sued his employer, FedEx,…
Let Your Employees Get the Jab (COVID-19 Vaccination) — You May Get a Tax Credit
If you are an employer with under 500 employees, you may be eligible for a tax credit for paid leave provided to your employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccination or for paid leave they take to recover from any illness or condition as a result of receiving the vaccine. The Biden administration recently announced this…
Coming Back (or Staying Gone) for More: ARPA Extends Tax Credits for Providing COVID-19 Leave
Just when you had your COVID-19 leave policies in place, Congress goes and passes new legislation: the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Remember, as we outlined in a previous blog post, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) was passed in March of last year and provided that employers with fewer than 500 employees…
The Doctor Will See You Now via Telemedicine and It May Qualify as Treatment under the FMLA
As you already know, COVID-19 changed almost everything, and some of those things are likely here to stay (or at least for a while longer). One widespread change is the use of videoconferencing, including in the medical field. An increase in the use of videoconferences to treat patients (aka telemedicine or telehealth) and efforts to…