It is important if not critical for Employers to have an in-depth understanding of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) impacts their company in 2023. The ability to manage the idiosyncrasies of the processing of FMLA and how one processing failure can result in thousands of dollars in fines & penalties, auditing by the Department of Labor (DOL), cost of investigations, loss of productivity, and the cost of misuse by employees. In addition, statistics show that over 61% of Employers have difficulty managing FMLA leave and intermittent leave.

When you add the complexities of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), reasonable accommodation and changes in states based on the definitions of eligible family members and other new mandatory regulations like paid leave regulations,  and currently or soon-to-be legally effective Pregnancy Regulations like the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and the PUMP Act, the possibility of FMLA overlapping with the (ADA), the increase of discrimination claims and wrongful termination allegations by employees, it is no wonder that this long time leave process is an administrative nightmare for Employers.

Many Employers are confused about what to do if an employee requests additional leave to manage their illness or their family member’s illnesses. Should Employers extend unpaid leave on a case-by-case basis or should they limit those decisions across the board? Additionally, when does the ADA supersede FMLA? Is there reasonable accommodation that can be offered? Does the Employer risk violations when making these decisions?

Areas Covered:-

• Learn what regulatory agencies enforce FMLA processing and how you can protect yourself from being a target.
• Learn how preparing your managers with compliance training can reduce your risk for high penalties as a good faith effort from FMLA violations.
• Learn why Employers are at risk for FMLA allegations even when employees don’t ask for FMLA.
• Learn how the new Pregnancy protection regulations by the DOL have also impacted reasonable accommodations in the workplace
• Learn how the state-paid leave programs interact with FMLA
• Learn how new FLMA forms are being developed by the DOL
• What are the challenges with employees on FMLA leave who do not pay for their benefits?
• Is extended leave part of the ADA reasonable accommodations requirements?
• How can the DOL assist with FMLA extensions?
• How do Employer policies impact decisions regarding FMLA extensions?
• How can Employers protect themselves against FMLA retaliation when deciding to not extend FMLA to employees?
• What is the best way to accommodate employees without impacting your company by identifying undue hardship?
• How should HR professionals manage FMLA extension requests?
• What about third-party administrators (TPA) if you outsource your FMLA Administration?
• How does the ADA regulate decisions about reasonable accommodation requests?
• What policies should be in place to mitigate allegations of retaliation?
• What policy will decrease your risk when you integrate it with your Employee Handbook?
• What if you need to terminate an employee after they complete their 12-week FMLA Leave?
• How can the Employer protect themselves from hard decisions in rejecting FMLA extension requests?

Why Should You Attend:-

Based on these missteps that cost Employers so much and impact their day-to-day operations to navigate this process, Employers need to have an understanding of the FMLA and other leave mandates and develop a foolproof process to mitigate these and other workplace compliance regulations.

No one promises (or shouldn’t promise) that any webinar will make an Employer an expert in FMLA compliance but with an efficient process, effective training for managers and HR professionals, checklists, and tools that can reduce risk, after taking this comprehensive training, Employers will be able to mitigate the risk and get back to running your business successfully.

Who Should Attend:-

• All Employers that have 50 employees
• Business Owners that have 40+ employees should prepare for FMLA eligibility
• Company Leadership
• Compliance professionals
• Payroll Administrators for intermittent leave
• HR Professionals