LEGISLATION WHICH WOULD EXPAND FMLA?

Posted in Law ::: March 23, 2009 11:48 AM

Most of you know that the Family Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993, mandates that  employers with 50 or more employees grant their employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for a serous health condition of the employee or their immediate family or for a birth/adoption of a child.  The FMLA also prohibits discrimination against an employee for utilizing an FMLA leave and mandates that the employee's job or a substantially similar one still be there upon his or her return.

Yet, out there floating in the Congressional stratosphere, are pieces of legislation that would expand these requirements.  There is the Healthy Families Act (S.910 / H.R. 1542) which would mandate that employers with 15 or more employees provide them with seven paid sick days a year.  And if you were thinking 'Fine, then I wil reduce their vacation pay accordingly in order to afford this' - sorry, the Bill says you cannot do that.  This legislation was introduced last year and didn't pass but it may come around again and is worth watching out for. 

There is also the Family and Medical Leave Enhancement Act of 2009, (H.R. 824) introduced last month, which would expand the coverage of the FMLA to include employers with more than 25 employees versus the 50 that is in the FMLA now.  This Act would also expand the reasons an employee could take an FMLA leave such as allowing "parental involvement leave" to participate in or attend children's and grandchildren's educational and extracurricular activities and also for the employee to attend regular medica/dental appointents or attend to the needs of an elderly relative, such as visiting them in an nursig home. 

Just some things to watch out for and to maybe call your Congressman about - brought to you by The Mattacola Law Firm Blog on this brisk March Monday.  Enjoy. 

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