News & Analysis as of

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) Interference Claims

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Suit based on notice of intermittent FMLA absences will go to trial

Employers, don't be too rigid about employee notice requirements. Weird case from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Imagine this: You're the HR manager at a manufacturing facility. An hourly employee has...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Supreme Court Declines to Resolve Circuit Split Over Discouraging Use of FMLA Leave

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) prohibits employers from denying qualified employees’ requests for leave or otherwise interfering with employees’ rights under the law. What happens if an employee never requests FMLA...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Fourth Circuit Reinstates Employee’s Claim That Social Media App Messages Provided Sufficient Notice of a Medical Absence

On August 15, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held in Roberts v. Gestamp West Virginia, LLC, that an employer’s “usual and customary” notice procedures relating to absences extended beyond the company’s...more

Husch Blackwell LLP

Seventh Circuit Issues Decision Addressing Employer Interference With FMLA Leave

Husch Blackwell LLP on

In a recent decision, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit clarified that an employer can violate the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) by discouraging an employee from taking FMLA leave, even...more

Akerman LLP - HR Defense

Watch that Frown: Mere Discouragement Enough to Violate the FMLA

There has never been a better time for employers to train managers on the basics of Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) rights and appropriate responses to FMLA requests. Believe it or not, FMLA rights can be violated even if...more

Amundsen Davis LLC

Employers Must Tread Carefully In FMLA Request Discussions To Avoid FMLA Interference Claims

Amundsen Davis LLC on

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides employees essentially two paths to bring lawsuits for alleged FMLA violations: retaliation claims and interference claims....more

Cozen O'Connor

Seventh Circuit Clarifies that Denial of Leave is Not Necessary for an FMLA Interference Claim

Cozen O'Connor on

On June 1, 2022, in the case of Salvatore Ziccarelli v. Thomas J. Dart, et al., the Seventh Circuit rendered an opinion clarifying that an employer can violate the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) by discouraging an...more

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Clarifies Employee’s Burden of Proof for FMLA Interference

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC on

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals (WVSCA) issued a new ruling in Fairmont Tool Inc. v. Opyoke, clarifying an employee’s burden of proof to sustain an interference claim under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Seventh Circuit: Actual Denial of FMLA Benefits Is Not an Element of FMLA Interference

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) does not require actual denial of FMLA leave to find liability based on interference with FMLA rights. FMLA’s Section...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

FMLA "interference" doesn't require denial of leave

The court is right, I think. A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued an opinion on Wednesday that provides helpful clarification for employers and their leave administrators. ...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

‘No Harm, No Foul,’ Says the Seventh Circuit in an FMLA Interference Case

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed summary judgment on behalf of an employer that was sued in an interference claim under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). In the case, Hickey v. Protective Life...more

Genova Burns LLC

Pennsylvania Employee Files Suit Against Former Employer for FFCRA Violations in the Wake of COVID-19

Genova Burns LLC on

In one of the first lawsuits filed since the passage of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”), a Pennsylvania employee is claiming FFCRA interference and retaliation against her former employer, an airline...more

McAfee & Taft

Falsified FMLA forms torpedo retaliation claims

McAfee & Taft on

The U.S. Department of Labor makes available a variety of Family and Medical Leave Act forms to employers. When used by companies, the DOL forms are extremely helpful with managing and administering employees’ FMLA absences....more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Whew! Fifth Circuit Reinforces Importance of Documenting Performance Issues

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Seyfarth Synopsis: In affirming summary judgment in favor of the defendant in an Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) interference and retaliation case, the Fifth Circuit reinforced the importance of documenting performance...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Employer’s Additional Notice Requirement For Requesting FMLA Leave Dooms Attempt To Dismiss Employee’s Interference Claims

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Employees who take FMLA leave may be required to comply with the employer’s usual and customary notice and procedural requirements for requesting leave. If the employee does not follow these requirements, the employer may...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Wisconsin Judge Rules That HR’s Assurances Before Employee’s One-Year Anniversary May Give Rise to FMLA Claim

Employees are not eligible for leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) unless, among other things, they have worked for a covered employer for at least 12 months. It is also a matter of common sense that...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

An Employee’s Workplace Asthma Attack May Trigger FMLA Protections

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Many times, timing is everything (or nearly so). For example, in Dighello v. Thurston Foods, Inc. (and unlike the Eleventh Circuit’s ruling in Bailey v. Oakwood Healthcare, Inc., about which we recently wrote), the trial...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Beware What You Share – Disclosure of Medical Information Results in Retaliation and Interference Claims

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

A United States District Court in Florida thwarted an employer’s attempt to toss the FMLA claims of an employee who sued after his medical condition was disclosed to co-workers who subsequently made fun of him. The employee...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Weighty Issues: Obesity And The But-For Test Under The ADAAA

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Obesity is still a hot topic both in our health conscious culture and in our courtrooms where we continue to see ADAAA claims based on the notion that an employer fired an employee because the employee was obese. After the...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Fourth Circuit Finds Sufficient Evidence of FMLA Fraud to Defeat Interference Claim

Employees approved for unscheduled intermittent Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) can drive their employers crazy. While most such employees use the leave responsibly for true medical conditions, employers sometimes notice a...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Fourth Circuit Says Failure to Advise Employee of Leave Reinstatement Interfered with FMLA Rights

The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2002 Ragsdale decision rejected Department of Labor regulations stating that failure to provide employees with notice of leave rights was a per se violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act....more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Second Circuit Holds HR Professionals Can Be Liable as ‘Employers’ Under FMLA

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has recently held that a human resources manager could be held liable as an employer under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). In issuing its decision in Graziadio v. Culinary...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

Avoiding FMLA Interference Claims: Walking a Fine Line Between Permissible and Impermissible Comments

Foley & Lardner LLP on

When it comes to Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave, not all comments are treated equally. Some comments may discourage an employee from using FMLA leave, thereby interfering with the employee’s FMLA rights and...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Terminating Employee on Day After Return From FMLA Leave Not Good Idea

In some situations, employees taking Family and Medical Leave were on shaky grounds with regard to their continuing employment prior to the absence. The employer then moves to terminate the employee either while he remains on...more

Littler

Tenth Circuit Upholds Employee Termination 2 Days After FMLA Leave Request

Littler on

The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, in Brown v. ScriptPro, LLC, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 24364 (Nov. 27, 2012), recently clarified that discharging an employee within two days of a request for medical leave does not by itself...more

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