No more worrying about employees taking advantage of the FMLA

As her company grew, so did the burdens on Megan’s HR department. And since she WAS the HR department, that meant more paperwork, more hassles, and more stress.

But just when she thought things couldn’t get any harder, they did – BIG TIME …

“Where did we go right?!?”

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FMLA Compliance Guide: Practical Advice on Managing Family and Medical Leave Book

Yes! I need to manage intermittent leave ... understand what constitutes a “serious health condition” ... and make sure we're not granting leave when we don't have to. Rush me the FMLA Compliance Guide. I understand that if I’m not 100% satisfied, I can return it for a complete refund – no questions asked. On that basis, here’s my order.

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  • Help me take command of my office again, starting today!

Dear Colleague:

Megan Parsons was one of the first employees at Best Foot Forward, an athletic shoe manufacturer.  At first, her duties included stacking boxes, answering phones, and lacing sneakers. The only time she thought about “HR” was when she saw it in the baseball box scores in the newspaper.

But then, Best Foot Forward grew. And grew some more. Before she knew it, Megan was managing a busy office, which had her setting up employee health plans … network-linking their new satellite locations … and tracking vacation time. When callers would ask to speak to the HR department, she’d say, “You’re talkin’ to her!”

As the company added new employees and new locations, things got more and more complex. And it was then that Megan heard what she started calling “the four-letter word”: FMLA.

“Six months ago, if you’d asked me what FMLA was, I’d have said it was a food additive,” Megan told me over a recent (hurried) lunch. “But now, it’s ‘FMLA this,’ ‘FMLA that.’  And I keep getting calls from attorneys, which means I’m spending time and money on OUR attorney. I’m starting to think that FMLA stands for Fill My Lawyer’s Accounts.”

“I mean, look at this stuff,” she moaned, pulling a sheaf of papers out of her briefcase. “Linda’s driving me nuts with one-hour requests for time off. Bill is claiming a ‘serious medical condition,’ and the guy bench-presses 450. Tammy is claiming she should get her attendance bonus – even though she was out three weeks taking care of her dad!”

“Sounds rough,” I agreed.

“It is,” Megan said. "And that’s not the half of it! The people taking FMLA leave are killing our productivity. And the people who AREN’T are ticked off at the people who are. They feel like half the staff comes and goes as it pleases.

“All these new responsibilities to deal with! It’s like FMLA means Five Million Little Assignments. I thought the company growing would be a good thing – but they haven’t grown the HR department!

“I mean, where did we go right?”

Megan talked to me because I’m her friend, but also because she knows I work for Business Management Daily. She had participated in a webinar we’d done on the FMLA a few years ago, but hadn’t kept up on the changes in the law.

I smiled, then pulled out my BlackBerry. After a few seconds, her Trio started buzzing. She looked at it, and saw an untitled e-mail from me. “What did you just do?” she asked me.

“What did I do?  I simply Forwarded Megan Life-changing Answers. I sent you a copy of our FMLA Compliance Guide.”

FMLA Compliance Guide: Practical Advice on Managing Family and Medical Leave Book

I want to stop worrying about whether I’m exposing my company to a lawsuit every time I make an FMLA-related decision. With the FMLA Compliance Guide, I can manage the Family and Medical Leave Act – not the other way around!

ORDER NOW
  • Help me take command of my office again, starting today!

Ease your FMLA burden by learning what’s required – and what’s not

Complex new regulations make complying with the Family and Medical Leave Act harder than ever before. Are you exposing your company to a potential lawsuit? To find out, take this quick FMLA Compliance Self-Audit:

True or false?

All the statements in the self-audit are undeniably true.

Compliance with the Family and Medical Leave Act is indeed costly and confusing. What’s more, the politicians in Washington claim that the FMLA is really simple and straightforward for employers to understand.

It may sound simple to them.

But 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for “serious health conditions” can be very complicated in the real world. Every day, employers across the country deal with real-world situations and questions such as:

  • In an emergency, can an employee claim FMLA without informing someone at work?
  • Do I have to count temporary and part-time employees toward the 50-employee minimum?
  • What if my company downsizes during an employee’s FMLA leave? Will I still owe her a job?
  • Does treatment for substance abuse qualify an employee for FMLA leave?
  • Can I require an employee to return to work early if I offer a “light-duty” assignment?

Fortunately, the trusted experts at Business Management Daily have recently published the FMLA Compliance Guide. It’s guaranteed to give you concrete answers to your most perplexing FMLA questions.

Thanks to the Compliance Guide, you don’t have to let the FMLA disrupt your business. Take control with the quick and easy advice in this practical resource. You’ll learn what steps to take in hundreds of real-world situations, and how the new revisions to the law affect employers.

FMLA Compliance Guide: Practical Advice on Managing Family and Medical Leave Book

I want to stop worrying about whether I’m exposing my company to a lawsuit every time I make an FMLA-related decision. With the FMLA Compliance Guide, I can manage the Family and Medical Leave Act – not the other way around!

ORDER NOW
  • Help me take command of my office again, starting today!

The Compliance Guide will help you discover the seven issues you must cover – in writing – with an employee requesting FMLA leave, whether you can legally fire someone who is on FMLA leave, and an amazingly simple strategy that prevents employees from taking 24 weeks of back-to-back leave. The FMLA Compliance Guide is guaranteed to give you concrete answers to your most perplexing FMLA questions.

Here are just some of the things you’ll learn in the FMLA Compliance Guide:

  • An amazingly simple strategy that prevents employees from taking 24 weeks of back-to-back leave
  • How to kick-start the 12-week FMLA meter
  • The one situation where you can legally deny reinstatement after FMLA leave
  • 4 tests to determine if several closely held companies will trigger compliance with the 50-employee minimum
  • When you can expect to receive money back from an employee on FMLA leave
  • A simple formula for determining if a part-time employee is eligible under the law
  • 7 issues you must cover – in writing – with an employee requesting leave
  • The 3 most important steps you can take to make sure your company is in compliance with the FMLA
  • Whether or not you can legally fire someone who’s away on FMLA leave
  • How to prove you acted in “good faith” and avoid paying a lot in liquidated damages

table of contents

  • FMLA Regulations
  • Covered Employers
  • Eligible Employees
  • Continuation of Benefits
  • Notification Deadlines
  • ‘Serious Health Condition’
  • Reinstating a Worker
  • Compliance Headaches
  • FMLA Forms: Online Resources
  • 10 Compliance Tips

1. ‘12-Month’ Eligibility Requirement
2. Timing of Doctor Visits
3. Work-Related Bonuses
4. Notice Requirements
5. Employer Obligations
6. Employee Obligations
7. Medical Certification
8. Settlement of FMLA Claims
9. Active-Duty Leave: Military Families
10. Caregiver Leave: Military Families

3. Critical Questions on Employee Coverage
4. Military Family Leave
5. Frequently Asked Questions
6. Recent Court Rulings

The FMLA Compliance Guide is written by Matthew S. Effland, a shareholder with the prestigious nationwide law firm of Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak and Stewart, P.C. He is often called in on complex areas of employment law, including FMLA compliance, and he is a regular speaker at the Society for Human Resource Management’s annual conference. Mr. Effland also presents the popular FMLA webinar series for Business Management Daily.

FMLA Compliance Guide: Practical Advice on Managing Family and Medical Leave Book

I want to stop worrying about whether I’m exposing my company to a lawsuit every time I make an FMLA-related decision. With the FMLA Compliance Guide, I can manage the Family and Medical Leave Act – not the other way around!

ORDER NOW
  • Help me take command of my office again, starting today!

I saw Megan yesterday, picking up her boys from soccer practice. “Well,” I asked her. “How are things going? Was the FMLA Compliance Guide helpful?”

“Are you kidding?" she said. “It was a godsend! This is the first time I’ve seen my kids in the daylight in about a month.  That one little book has probably saved us thousands in legal fees, as well as the leave we’ve been granting 'just to be safe' – but now I know we don’t have to.”

“I’m glad it helped. Did you also sign up for the free HR Weekly e-letter I told you about?”

“Sure did," Megan said. “What can I say, Pat? Between the Compliance Guide, that webinar, and HR Weekly, you’ve Fixed My Life Again!”

Sincerely,

Pat DiDomenico
Editorial Director

FMLA Compliance Guide: Practical Advice on Managing Family and Medical Leave Book

I want to stop worrying about whether I’m exposing my company to a lawsuit every time I make an FMLA-related decision. With the FMLA Compliance Guide, I can manage the Family and Medical Leave Act – not the other way around!

ORDER NOW
  • Help me take command of my office again, starting today!

P.S. Your satisfaction is unconditionally guaranteed. If the FMLA Compliance Guide isn’t everything I (and Megan) have said it is, and more, return it for a full, 100% refund. Unlike the FMLA, there are no questions asked, no hassles, and absolutely no red tape!

P.P.S. You CAN manage intermittent leave ... understand what constitutes a “serious health condition” ... and make sure you're not granting leave when you don't have to. Take control of the FMLA – get your copy of the FMLA Compliance Guide now!