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In most cases, the decision to approve or deny an employee’s request for time off is reasonably straightforward. Does the employee have available PTO? Did he or she follow established procedures, such as giving proper advance for the request? Will other employees be available to cover the work?
However, in situations where the request falls under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), approving or denying time off can get tricky fast. If you find managing FMLA difficult — which involves permitting unpaid leave for certain medical and family reasons — you’re not alone. Many business owners covered under this federal law struggle to interpret and uphold FMLA guidelines. The decision gets even trickier when more generous state and local laws apply.
With a deeper understanding of the rules and a fair approach, however, you can keep your company in complete compliance. Here are six real-world FMLA scenarios and what you should do to stay on the right side of the law.
Addressing a pregnant worker’s request for leave
Janet, your recently hired accountant, has just informed you that she is pregnant with her first child. She wants to know if she will be paid during maternity leave and whether you will hold her job while she is out.
Legal Considerations
Managing medical leave requests properly can seem overwhelming, but with a deeper understanding of the rules and a fair approach, you can keep your company in complete compliance.
Recognizing absences that fall under the FMLA
Frank, a warehouse coordinator, has been with the company for eight years. Frank mentions over lunch with a few managers that he is tired from all the driving he’s been doing taking his son to physical therapy appointments. His supervisor, Susan, is part of the discussion. But it’s her last week with the company, so she isn’t too concerned with Frank’s attendance. She knows he’s been missing a lot of work, but she trusts that Frank will get his work done, so she doesn’t address it. A few weeks later, Frank’s new supervisor writes Frank up for excessive absences and demotes him to a part-time schedule.
Legal Considerations
Determining whether a medical condition qualifies for FMLA leave
Your office manager, Lisa, has chronic back pain and starts missing work due to flare-ups. She’s an “eligible employee” under the FMLA, so you provide her the proper FMLA notices and a medical certification form so you can determine whether the time off qualifies for FMLA leave. She returns the medical certification on time. When reviewing the form, you see that under “Frequency” the doctor wrote “unknown,” and under “Duration” the doctor wrote “indefinite.” Should you designate her absences as FMLA?
Legal Considerations
Dismissing a worker while on FMLA leave
Bob, a sales associate, is on FMLA leave for hip surgery. While he’s out, you discover in a routine audit that Bob was entering false sales to boost his commissions, essentially having items shipped to friends and returned once he was paid his commissions. The scam was going on for several months before his surgery, and he received a lot of money in unearned commissions. How should you handle this, knowing Bob is on job-protected FMLA leave?
Legal Considerations
Intermittent leave for certain qualifying conditions
Your IT manager, James, has severe depression that requires him to stay home sometimes. The condition also demands frequent doctor’s office visits, where he works for a few hours and then leaves for the rest of the day. How do you account for his hours away from the business?
Legal Considerations
Military caregiver leave under the FMLA
The husband of one of your call center employee’s suffered a severe leg injury in the line of duty. She’d like to assist him with his medical appointments for the injury, but it would require taking time off. Is the permitted to do this?
Legal Considerations
Time off for COVID-19 or another pandemic
Carol, a sales associate who has been feeling under the weather with flu-like symptoms, tests positive for coronavirus. It is essential that she quarantine to prevent the spread of the virus, but she has no available PTO. Does the FMLA apply?
Legal Considerations
To comply with employee leave laws, it’s important to check all applicable federal, state and local regulations before you deny an employee time off from work.
Follow a consistent, streamlined request and approval process, as well. The Time off Request Smart App provides you employees self-service access to submit time off requests electronically. You’ll receive a notification when a request is submitted, at which point you can approve or deny the request.
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