This content was originally published in July 2009. For the latest FMLA regulation changes, visit our FMLA article archives or try our practical FMLA compliance guide.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has created a list of best practices to avoid discrimination against workers with caregiving responsibilities.
The document, Employer Best Practices for Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities, supplements Unlawful Disparate Treatment of Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities, issued in 2007.
With regard to family and medical leave for employees, EEOC encourages employers to “provide reasonable personal or sick leave to allow employees to engage in caregiving even if not required to do so by the FMLA.”
Among the listed “best practices” for leave management, EEOC advises employers to:
- Permit employees to use sick leave to care for family members who are ill and/or to handle medical emergencies involving family members.
- Engage in dialogue with employees to determine the amount of leave that is appropriate and acceptable based on their workload, upcoming deadlines, and personal circumstances.
- Ensure that leave policies exist and are available to male and female employees on an equal basis. Train managers to ensure that both male and female employees are aware of leave policies and are not implicitly or explicitly discouraged from requesting leave.
- To the extent feasible, permit employees to take leave with little notice in case of an emergency and to use leave in short increments, rather than full days or weeks.
- Establish leave donation banks that enable employees to voluntarily contribute their leave to co-workers.
EEOC notes that caregiving issues may arise suddenly and unexpectedly and may be resolved in a relatively short amount of time. Therefore, it encourages employers to remain flexible and responsive to individual employee’s circumstances.
The new document also includes recommendations for workplace policies aimed at removing barriers to equal employment opportunity for workers with caregiving responsibilities.
Examples include
- Flexible work arrangements
- Part-time opportunities with proportional compensation and benefits, and
- Equal opportunity policies that address unlawful discrimination against caregivers.
To see the full text of the EEOC’s guidance document, go here.