Employee Leave (FMLA and ADA)

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Sushi

Over the years, I’ve mentioned my adorable dog many times in connection with blog posts on employment-related topics like pet bereavement leave, paw-ternity leave (i.e. pet parental leave), and Take Your Dog to Work Day. (And here he is, dressed up for Halloween – as sushi!) In addition, I’ve blogged several times about sick leave for service animals (here and here) – each time noting that there is nothing that requires employers to allow employees to take sick leave for pets. Until now?Continue Reading Sick Leave for Pets?

On October 18, 2024, the Maryland Department of Labor (MDOL) finally issued its proposed regulations to implement Maryland’s paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) law. Applicable to all employers with Maryland employees and starting July 1, 2026, the FAMLI law will provide most employees in Maryland with 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave, with the possibility of an additional 12 weeks of paid parental leave, as we have previously detailed in our E-lerts from April 12, 2023 and April 12, 2022. Continue Reading Maryland’s Proposed FAMLI Regulations Are Finally Here – What Do They Say?

Today, I want to send an overnight letter to FedEx Corp. In that letter, I would suggest that paying attention to the competition (that is, UPS) often makes business sense and can save a company money.

Because, if FedEx had paid attention, it might have avoided a lawsuit filed against it by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (fondly known by us insiders as “the EEOC”).Continue Reading EEOC Sues FedEx Over “Fully Healed” Return-to-Work Requirement

As we await the proposed regulations to implement the forthcoming paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) program in Maryland, the state Department of Labor previously issued resources for employers, including FAQs, to assist them in preparing for compliance, as we discussed in our May 2024 E-Update. And now the MDOL has updated and vastly expanded those FAQs to offer additional clarification.Continue Reading Maryland DOL Releases Updated FAQs on Paid Family and Medical Leave

On July 10, 2024, the Maryland Department of Labor’s (MDOL) issued a second version of “draft” regulations to implement Maryland’s paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) law. Applicable to all employers with Maryland employees and starting July 1, 2026, the FAMLI law will provide most employees in Maryland with 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave, with the possibility of an additional 12 weeks of paid parental leave, as we have previously detailed in our E-lerts from April 12, 2023 and April 12, 2022. The MDOL issued a first draft of the regulations earlier this year, and we discussed the items of interest or significance in a January 30, 2024 E-lert. Subsequently, amendments to the FAMLI law were made during the 2024 General Assembly session (which we covered in our April 10, 2024 E-lert). And now we highlight the more significant developments in the latest version of the draft regulations. For more, click here.Continue Reading Round Two of Maryland’s “Draft” FAMLI Regulations – What Do They Say?

On January 29, 2024, the Maryland Department of Labor’s (MDOL) issued “draft” regulations to implement Maryland’s paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) law, and invited public comment. Starting January 1, 2026 (caveat below), this law will provide most Maryland employees with 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave, with the possibility of an additional 12 weeks of paid parental leave, as we have previously detailed in our E-lerts from April 12, 2023 and April 12, 2022. We have identified the following items of interest or significance to employers in the regulations.Continue Reading Maryland’s “Draft” FAMLI Regulations – What Do They Say?

Say, like the Secretary of Defense. The media has been abuzz with the story of Secretary Lloyd Austin’s recent medical issues – and particularly the fact that the White House, as well as the Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks (who takes over the Secretary’s responsibilities in his absence) were not notified until after the Secretary Austin had been in the hospital for three days! Various members of Congress are calling for an investigation, among other things. But that raises the question for employers – what is an employee’s responsibility to notify the employer when they will not be at work for medical reasons? Continue Reading When One of Your Employees Fails to Report to Work…

Once upon a time, employees in all states but Montana (always bucking the establishment!) were presumed to be employed at-will, absent some sort of employment agreement (e.g. individual contract for a term, a collective bargaining agreement, policies that contemplate termination for cause, etc.). That means that either the employer or the employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time, for any or even no reason (as long as it’s not illegal – like, say, discrimination or retaliation). And so our well-meaning but foolish Employer is terribly excited by that principle because they want to get rid of an Employee. But … as with all good fairy tales, there is a dark side.Continue Reading At-Will Employment Is a Fairy Tale…

Opinion letters from the U.S. Department of Labor are pretty unusual, so I get really excited when they issue one. And typically, the letter addresses an issue of some significance for employers. So I was giddy (GIDDY, I say!) when I saw a new one had just dropped – until I actually read it. Three times, because I thought I was missing something. But really, it just affirms what I already thought about the Family and Medical Leave Act and holidays. At least it’s a good reminder of how to deal with holidays under the FMLA. Continue Reading (Not Terribly Useful) Guidance from the DOL on the FMLA and Holidays

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the EEOC has provided guidance to employers on how the federal anti-discrimination laws interact with COVID-19. This guidance, What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act and Other EEO Laws, was revised multiple times to account for changing circumstances and, now with the declared end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, the EEOC has updated it once more. The revisions remind employers that, although the declared emergency may be over, COVID-19 still has a workplace impact that lingers on.Continue Reading Employers Beware: The End of the COVID-19 Emergency Does Not Mean The End of the EEOC’s COVID-19 Guidance