Family
& Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
The
Family
and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides certain employees
with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year.
It also requires that their group health benefits be maintained
during the leave.
FMLA is designed to help employees balance their work and
family responsibilities by allowing them to take reasonable
unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons. It
also seeks to accommodate the legitimate interests of employers
and promote equal employment opportunity for men and women.
FMLA applies to all public agencies, all public and private
elementary and secondary schools, and companies with 50
or more employees. These employers must provide an eligible
employee with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year for
any of the following reasons:
for
the birth and care of the newborn child of an employee;
for placement with the employee of a child for adoption
or foster care;
to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child,
or parent) with a serious health condition; or
to take medical leave when the employee is unable to work
because of a serious health condition.
Employees are eligible for leave if they have worked for
their employer at least 12 months, at least 1,250 hours
over the past 12 months, and work at a location where the
company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles. Whether
an employee has worked the minimum 1,250 hours of service
is determined according to FLSA principles for determining
compensable hours or work.
Time
taken off work due to pregnancy complications can be counted
against the 12 weeks of family and medical leave.
A
final rule effective on January 16, 2009, updates the FMLA
regulations to implement new military family leave entitlements
enacted under the National Defense Authorization Act for
FY 2008.
Special
rules apply to employees of local education agencies. The
Department of Labor administers FMLA; however, the Office
of Personnel Management (OPM) administers FMLA for most
federal employees.
http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/
The
U.S. Department of Labor will publish a final rule on Nov.
17 to update its regulations under the 15-year-old Family
and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) -- a measure that will help
workers and their employers better understand their rights
and responsibilities, and speed the implementation of a
new law that expands FMLA coverage for military family members.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/US-Department-Labor-final-rule/story.aspx?guid=%7BAC6D1A92-0894-4B5D-BF58-33C5EB7FAE4B%7D
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