Abuse under the Family and Medical Leave Act touches every employer. They are difficult cases because you must deal with it (or you lose your good employees because they are doing their co-workers’ work) but at the same time, you almost assuredly setting yourself up for a retaliation suit. How do you put your company in the best legal position while dealing with abuse? Since the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) was signed into law, employers have been faced with the challenge of ensuring compliance with the statute’s requirements while also developing strategies to prevent employees from taking unfair advantage of the system. Although confusion surrounding employers’ obligations under the FMLA continues to be an issue, many employers have successfully developed policies to prevent employees from taking FMLA leave they are not entitled to take. Abuse can be difficult to identify and maybe even more difficult to address. In addition to the FMLA, there are a host of other laws that protect employees while taking leave. While most employees will not abuse these rights, many will. Those who abuse the system create many headaches for employers and cause morale problems among those who are not abusing the system. Intermittent leave tends to be the most susceptible to abuse and the most difficult for employers to address. How do you identify the abuse and what can you do about it? 

Learning Objectives

Course Level - Intermediate

Who Should Attend   

Why Should You Attend

Abuse of leave cannot be ignored. Your employees who do not abuse leave know – just as you do – which employees are abusing the right to leave. They get very upset when they see that you are not dealing with it. And, eventually, they will leave costing you the money you put into training them and the costs associated with finding a new hire.