The Federal Sector FMLA Blog posts about Brown v. The Pension Boards, United Church of Christ, a New York case where the court dismissed the employee’s case. The reason? The employee/plaintiff had his mom and sister report his need for FMLA leave, during his absence, to the employer.
The lesson? Unless you’re unconscious, pick up […]

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), author of the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA), announced in February his intent to introduce legislation which would expand FMLA coverage into paid leave rights and extend coverage to more workers. (Right now, eligibility is limited to those who’ve worked at least 1,250 hours and 12 months for the employer […]

The Department of Labor has extended the deadline for comments on the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) from February 2 (this coming Friday) to February 16 (two weeks later). See the notice published in the Federal Register here.
What’s the comment period about? In a nutshell: anytime a federal agency wants to makes changes to […]

Following on the last post regarding the push for paid sick leave comes this press release from the Department of Labor, which is seeking comments from the public on the decade-old regulations implementing the Family and Medical Leave Act. 
Whenever an administrative agency such as the Department of Labor seeks to amend or implement regulations concerning […]

This article from the New York Times (free registration required) details the plans of some minorities’ and workplace rights groups to push for enhanced FMLA rights. On the groups’ collective mind? Paid sick leave.
From the article:
Now supporters are planning a big push for sick day legislation not just in Congress, but in Maine, Maryland, Montana […]

MSNBC.com is featuring an article on something they’re calling “Desk Rage” - the inexorable build-up of toxic stress that leads some office workers to snap and engage in abusive or violent behavior directed towards their workplace, colleagues, or bosses. This is a problem I’m pleased to see being addressed more and more these days by […]

In what must have been a frustrating experience for the plaintiff, the 10th Circuit ruled recently that the Family and Medical Leave Act’s “50 employees/75-mile area” requirement (a prerequisite to an employee being deemed “covered” by FMLA’s provisions) is measured by way of surface miles, not “as the crow flies.” Hackworth v. Progressive Casualty Ins. Co., […]