Articles and Blogs

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) recently published resource documents on two hot topics in the labor and employment world: bathroom access for transgender employees and leaves of absence for disabled workers. The EEOC notes that its resource documents do not create new policy, are not voted on by the Commission and are... READ MORE

President Obama signed a new Executive Order on September 7, 2015 that will require certain federal contractors to provide employees up to 56 hours of paid sick leave per year.  The leave can be used for the employee’s care or if the employee needs to take care of a family member.  The new obligations... READ MORE

As the EEOC continues to focus on the use of unpaid leave beyond policy limits as a potential reasonable accommodation and employees continue to request leave extensions, I am frequently asked: “How do I know when enough is enough?”  Unfortunately, the determination of an undue hardship is a factual issue, and the only way... READ MORE

“Sicker than a Dog” Under the ADA, an employer is required to “reasonably accommodate” a “qualified individual with a disability.”  In this recent case, the court had occasion to consider whether an open-ended request for leave was “reasonable” when it was made by an employee who claimed to be “sicker than a dog” and... READ MORE

Sports Analogy Can Have Multiple Meanings In sports, a coach will sometimes tell a player to just “walk it off” or “push through” the pain when a minor injury happens in a game or in practice.  One Florida insurance company found out that the world of sports and the world of employment are not... READ MORE

Often times when an employee is at home while on an approved FMLA leave, work-related questions will arise that only the employee can answer.  So, the manager or a co-worker will call the employee at home and get the answer.  Usually that’s not a problem – but it could be depending on how often... READ MORE

Did Daughter Really “Need to Care for” Mom in Las Vegas? A jury is going to decide the winner of this game.  Recently a district court in Illinois denied an employer’s motion for summary judgment when it fired an employee who traveled with her mother to Las Vegas in order to “care for” her terminally ill... READ MORE

Pregnant Employee with 10 Pound Lifting Restriction – What to Do? Is it unlawful discrimination for an employer to place a pregnant part-time merchandise stocker with a 10-pound lifting restriction on an involuntary unpaid leave? In this recent case decided by the Seventh Circuit, the Court said “No“. . . there was no unlawful... READ MORE

When is “Treatment” actually treatment under the FMLA? Imagine that your employee who has been diagnosed with anxiety and chronic back pain asked for FMLA leave for an afternoon doctor appointment.  Your employee had already provided a doctor’s certification that his condition required periodic treatments but the afternoon appointment was with a different doctor.  So, you... READ MORE

In an effort to reach out to employees who may not be aware of their rights for a leave of absence under the FMLA, the U. S. Department of Labor has set up a webpage that contains a great deal of helpful information.  The information is contained in a downloadable 16-page booklet – “Need Time? The... READ MORE