FMLA

Heed FMLA rules during weeks before Christmas, New Year’s Day

11/16/2021

Dec. 24 and 31, while usually not official work holidays, fall on Fridays this year. To stretch it to a long holiday weekend and in recognition of employees’ hard work during trying times, many employers will close on these days. Other employers traditionally close during the holiday week. The Department of Labor warns that such closures can complicate your calculations of employees’ FMLA leave entitlements.

Firing during FMLA leave? Prove FMLA wasn’t reason

11/04/2021

Employees cannot be fired for taking FMLA leave. If you must terminate someone who has taken FMLA leave, be prepared to show it had nothing to do with their leave-taking. Do that by contemporaneously documenting what led to the termination and when you made the decision to fire.

Document ADA requests to prove good faith

11/04/2021

The ADA requires a disabled employee and her employer to have an interactive conversation to determine whether it’s possible to accommodate the disability and, if so, how. If the employee doesn’t participate in the interactive process, she won’t be able to sue successfully over a denied accommodation. That’s why it’s essential to document every interaction once you suspect an employee might be disabled.

Employees’ pandemic lawsuits continue to evolve

10/21/2021

The mandatory vaccination cases aren’t going anywhere soon, as employers and the federal government are leaning on such policies. But two recent decisions also remind us that pandemic-related lawsuits come in many flavors.

Steer clear of questions about past drug use

10/14/2021

Warn supervisors not to pry into employees’ medical histories, including past abuse of drugs or alcohol. Simply asking workers about a perceived previous drug problem could trigger a lawsuit.

Long covid could trigger FMLA, ADA liability

10/14/2021

Employers need to be ready to respond to more requests for both FMLA intermittent leave and ADA accommodations.

Investigate before firing alleged FMLA ‘liar’

09/02/2021

Generally, employers are allowed to fire employees they believe lied about their need for FMLA leave. But there is an important proviso: The employer must act in good faith, showing it conducted an investigation into whether the employee was entitled to leave or not.

No FMLA? Consider time off as ADA accommodation

07/08/2021

When an employee is ill but has no leave available, supervisors often tell them they must show up for work or else be fired. But firing her could be a huge mistake. She might have a disability that could be reasonably accommodated by offering unpaid leave.

Prepare to accommodate covid after-effects

06/24/2021

Most people recover from covid-19 within a few weeks. However, reasonably large numbers of people who had the disease experience after-effects that may interfere with their ability to work. As a result, employers can expect to see more requests for ADA reasonable accommodations and FMLA intermittent leave.

Do your obligations follow digital nomads?

06/17/2021

Many employees who worked remotely through the pandemic will soon begin returning to work in person this fall. Before then, however, many of your pandemic teleworkers are likely planning to hit the road this summer—and taking their laptops with them as they can continue to work remotely from some location away from home. Here’s what to consider before giving them the green light.