Employers Responsibilities under FMLA
Look around your office…do you see a poster notifying you of your rights under the Family Medical Leave Act? If not, then your employer may be breaking the law. The Family Medical Leave Act touches many New York employees and employers. Simply put, the FMLA is what gives you important legal workplace protections when the expected and unexpected happen and you need time away from work.
Employers have certain duties and responsibilities under the Act that carry significant legal consequences when they are broken. Many employers are intentionally and unintentionally breaking the law by failing to provide notice to their employees.
Giving employers the benefit of the doubt, the obligation to publicize an employee’s rights under FMLA may not go with the office décor. Well that is just too bad.
Additionally, if you are covered under FMLA, your employer has a legal responsibility to give you written notice of certain situations covered under FMLA and include FMLA policies and procedures in employee handbooks.
Some of these benefits include: 12 weeks worth of unpaid leave to take care of yourself and immediate family, the right to return to work in the same position you left, protected benefits and protection against retaliation for asserting your rights. Employees also have certain responsibilities they should be notified of in order to cause limited disruptions to the workplace they are taking leave from. These employee requirements include providing reasonable notice of the need for leave and the anticipated length of leave.
In reality, the notice requirement is a good for both employers and employees. An informed workplace is often also a legal workplace so make sure to remind your boss on Monday if you feel like this information is not getting relayed to you.
