In December, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a notice that, in connection with reviewing and revising its regulations under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), it was seeking comments on a series of questions covering FMLA.
Now, the DOL has extended the deadline for submitting comments by two weeks. The new deadline is Feb. 16, 2007. Written comments on the request for information should be submitted to Richard M. Brennan, Senior Regulatory Officer, Wage and Hour Division, Employment Standards Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, Room S-3502, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210. Electronic comments may be submitted by e-mail to whdcomments@dol.gov.
Our HR Management & Compliance Report: How To Comply with California and Federal Leave Laws, covers everything you need to know to stay in compliance with both state and federal law in one of the trickiest areas of compliance for even the most experienced HR professional. Learn the rules for pregnancy and parental leaves, medical exams and certifications, intermittent leaves, required notices, and more.
The questions on which the DOL seeks comments include:
- Do employers track late arrivals and early departures for FMLA-covered conditions? If so, how is such leave counted against the employee’s allotment of twelve weeks of FMLA leave?
- Is there any evidence that employees are misusing FMLA leave? If so, how does this compare to other types of leave?
- Is there any evidence of employers closing or relocating facilities as a result of employee leave patterns (either scheduled or unscheduled)?
- Is there a way to appropriately balance employer absence control policies and legitimate employee use of unscheduled, intermittent leave?
Additional Resources
Request for Information on the Family and Medical Leave Act U.S. Department of Labor