Sooner or later you’re going to have an employee that needs to take a leave of absence.
Most likely (if you have more than 50 people at your company), this LOA will be covered under the Familly Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which means that not only do you have to grant the leave, you can’t punish the person in any way, shape, or form for taking time off.
Naturally, anyone with even a modicum of compassion will be happy to grant the time to someone who is critically ill, has a new baby, or is taking care of a sick family member.
Compassion aside, though, the people left at the office still have the burden of doing the work.
To keep reading, click here: Plan, Prepare, Conquer: How to Handle Leave of Absences Without Stressing Your Staff
Our office is experiencing these issues now due to an unexpected medical leave, and now another medical emergency has befallen another staff member.
I have a question about FMLA – our company is way over 50 people, so this applies. One of our coworkers had an accident, surgery, and has had several setbacks and has not been able to come back to work. His short term disability payments ended @ 3 months. One day after this, HR called our manager to ask her if he should be terminated! Manager said no, she wants him to come back as he’s an experienced employee with years of service.
Why would HR suggest this, when FMLA is clearly an option? I don’t know if my coworker has applied, or what the process is, but I was really taken aback that the company was ready to terminate employment just like that. I’m surprised they don’t realize that hiring someone new, training them, etc. is much more costly than keeping him on the books. He’s not “costing” them anything, as he’s non exempt, does not use our company’s insurance, and they don’t even have to pay out the paltry short term disability payments any longer. I just don’t get it.
And, thank you for the article. I’m going to suggest getting a temp when I go to work this morning.
FMLA would be over as well, as it is for only 12 weeks. But, the Americans with Disabilities Act might kick in here–I’m not sure.
It seems hard hearted but they may be concerned if they’ve terminated other people at exactly 12 weeks and this person is a different race or gender. They don’t want to look like they are discriminating.
I agree with your boss, though. Keep the great employee and let him have whatver time he needs to recover.
Also? Yay temps!