The Family and Medical Leave Act does not require employers to allow qualified employees to work remotely. While such requests may fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act’s reasonable accommodation obligation, the FMLA...more
How'd that happen? An employer who terminated an employee after he took intermittent FMLA leave for diabetes won its case, and recently won again on appeal. According to both courts, the employee appeared to be trying to...more
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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