Dive Brief:
- A Washington state roofer has paid $63,486 to a former employee to resolve a claim that it violated the worker’s Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) rights.
- U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) investigators determined that Mt. Baker Roofing knew that the worker had a serious health condition but failed to offer FMLA protections, such as notifying the employee that he was eligible for FMLA leave and designating his time away from work as protected. Investigators also found that the company retaliated against the worker and wrongfully terminated his employment, according to DOL.
- Mt. Baker paid $31,743 for lost wages and extra medical expenses the employee incurred when he lost his health benefits, plus an additional $31,743 in liquidated damages.
Dive Insight:
Employees need not use any special phrases or even mention the FMLA to qualify for leave and other protections, and employers have a responsibility to designate the leave as such when needed. To meet that responsibility, experts say, HR should train managers on recognizing, responding to and escalating requests.
And, once leave has been granted, HR needs to ensure continuation of group health insurance coverage under the same terms and conditions as if the employee had not taken leave, according to DOL. Employees must still pay their share, and an employee may choose not to maintain coverage while on leave, but when the employee returns from leave, the worker is entitled to be reinstated on the same terms as before leave without any qualifying period, physical examination or exclusion of pre-existing benefits, the agency says.
An employee’s entitlement to benefits other than group health benefits during FMLA leave, such as holiday pay, is determined by the employer’s policy for such benefits. "Any benefits that would be maintained while the employee is on other forms of leave, including paid leave if the employee substitutes accrued paid leave during FMLA leave," says a DOL fact sheet, "must be maintained while the employee is on FMLA leave."
